A defense minister has revealed that the MoD is actively looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made cars, while personnel have been told to avoid talking about classified information in all vehicles.
Security Advice for Defence Staff
In a recent appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to discuss secret material while travelling in Chinese cars.
He said that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that security is a issue in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD technology into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret classification in any vehicle, because of the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in protected areas. This is a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Security Background
This announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and cause disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This wider security environment underscores the importance of strong protocols and caution in every aspects of government operations, including transport use to discussions practices.
