A defense minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the possible security risks posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been instructed to refrain from talking about secret matters in any cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about classified material while riding in China-made cars.
The minister explained that the ministry is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that safety is a issue in every modern cars.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones 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 Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any kind of car, due to the growing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, the minister replied: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Security Background
This announcement follows reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to switch off buses and bring chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This broader security environment underscores the importance of strong measures and vigilance in every areas of official operations, from transport use to communication habits.
