An defense minister has stated that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the possible threats associated with Chinese-made cars, while personnel have been told to avoid talking about secret information in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
During a recent interview on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to discuss classified information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
He explained that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its fleets, but noted that security is a concern in all modern cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
However whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their car, to avoid having discussions at a classified classification in any car, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to only have those secret conversations in protected areas. This is a wise and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Security Background
The revelation follows reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
The wider security environment highlights the importance of robust measures and vigilance in every areas of official activities, including vehicle usage to communication habits.
