An defense official has confirmed that the MoD is actively looking into the possible threats associated with Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been instructed to refrain from discussing classified information in any cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD staff have been instructed not to talk about classified information while riding in Chinese cars.
He said that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but stressed that security is a concern in all contemporary cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a secret level in any car, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using all Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Background
This announcement comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to switch off public transport and cause chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel has been shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
The broader defence situation underscores the significance of strong measures and vigilance in all areas of official operations, from transport use to communication habits.
