An defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential threats associated with Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been advised to refrain from discussing secret information in any cars.
Security Advice for Defence Staff
During a recent interview on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on claims that MoD officials have been told not to talk about classified information while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister stated that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, however noted that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
However 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 MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those secret talks in secure locations. This is a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
The revelation comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
The broader defence situation underscores the importance of robust measures and vigilance in every aspects of official operations, including vehicle usage to communication practices.
