An defense official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively investigating the possible threats posed by Chinese-made cars, while personnel have been advised to refrain from discussing secret information in any cars.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
During a recent appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He stated that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, however noted that security is a concern in all modern cars.
We have a fleet of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent 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 classified level in any kind of car, because of the growing threats of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for anyone worried about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using every cars from China, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could allow China to disable public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
This wider defence environment underscores the importance of strong measures and vigilance in all areas of official operations, including vehicle usage to discussions habits.
