A defence minister has stated that the MoD is actively looking into the possible threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been advised to avoid talking about secret information in any cars.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He stated that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however stressed that security is a issue in every modern vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any car, due to the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
The revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been directing laser beams at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
This broader defence situation highlights the significance of strong protocols and caution in all areas of government operations, from transport use to communication habits.
