An defense minister has revealed that the MoD is currently examining the possible security risks posed by Chinese-made cars, and staff have been told to avoid discussing classified matters in any cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
During a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about classified information while riding in China-made vehicles.
He said that the ministry is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, however emphasised that security is a issue in all contemporary vehicles.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their car, not to have conversations at a classified level in any kind of car, because of the growing threats of surveillance that exist in all automobile, to only have those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using every cars from China, the minister responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Defence Background
The announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel has been shining lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This broader defence situation underscores the significance of robust protocols and vigilance in all areas of government activities, including transport usage to communication practices.
