An defence minister has revealed that the MoD is actively looking into the possible threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, and personnel have been advised to refrain from talking about classified matters in all cars.
Security Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about classified material while travelling in China-made vehicles.
The minister stated that the ministry is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, however stressed that security is a concern in every contemporary cars.
Our department has a collection of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a secret classification in any kind of car, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those secret conversations in secure locations. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Security Background
The revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to switch off public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
This wider defence environment highlights the significance of robust measures and caution in all aspects of official operations, from vehicle usage to discussions habits.
