An defense minister has stated that the MoD is currently investigating the possible threats associated with Chinese vehicles, and staff have been instructed to avoid talking about classified matters in all cars.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about secret information while riding in Chinese vehicles.
He explained that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that security is a concern in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their car, not to have discussions at a classified level in any kind of car, due to the growing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in protected areas. This is a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Background
The announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
This broader defence situation highlights the importance of strong measures and caution in all areas of government activities, including vehicle use to communication practices.
