A defense minister has stated that the MoD is actively examining the potential threats associated with Chinese cars, and personnel have been advised to avoid discussing classified information in all cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recent interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD staff have been told not to discuss secret material while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
The minister said that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but emphasised that safety is a concern in every modern cars.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug MoD technology into their car, to avoid having discussions at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to restrict those secret talks in secure locations. This is a prudent and sensible thing for anyone worried about security.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Security Context
This revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to disable public transport and cause chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This wider defence situation underscores the significance of strong protocols and vigilance in every areas of official operations, including vehicle use to discussions practices.
