A defense minister has confirmed that the MoD is actively investigating the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made cars, while staff have been instructed to avoid talking about secret information in any cars.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
In a recent appearance on a radio station, a defence minister addressed claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to discuss classified information while travelling in Chinese cars.
He stated that the ministry is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however stressed that security is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD technology into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, due to the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about security.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Defence Context
This revelation comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable China to disable buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The wider defence environment highlights the importance of strong protocols and vigilance in all aspects of government activities, including transport use to discussions practices.
