An defence official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential security risks associated with Chinese cars, and staff have been told to refrain from discussing classified information in all cars.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to talk about secret material while riding in Chinese vehicles.
He said that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but stressed that safety is a concern in all contemporary cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in every single automobile, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard responded: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Background
This revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been shining laser beams at RAF pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This broader defence environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and caution in every aspects of official operations, including vehicle use to discussions practices.
