A defence minister has confirmed that the MoD is actively examining the potential security risks posed by Chinese cars, while staff have been advised to avoid discussing secret information in all cars.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
In a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about secret material while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He stated that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however noted that security is a concern in all modern vehicles.
We have a collection of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a secret level in any kind of car, because of the growing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to only have those confidential talks in secure locations. This is a prudent and sensible thing for anyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, the minister responded: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Background
The announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to switch off buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been shining lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
This broader defence situation highlights the significance of robust measures and caution in all aspects of government operations, including vehicle usage to communication practices.
