An defence minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese vehicles, and staff have been instructed to refrain from talking about classified information in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for Defence Staff
During a recent appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about secret material while travelling in China-made cars.
He stated that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however stressed that security is a concern in all contemporary cars.
We have a collection of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their car, to avoid having discussions at a classified level in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to only have those secret conversations in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Defence Context
The revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese buses, which could enable China to switch off buses and cause chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
The broader defence situation underscores the importance of strong measures and caution in every areas of official activities, including vehicle usage to discussions habits.
