An defense minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese cars, and staff have been told to avoid talking about classified matters in all vehicles.
Security Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recent interview on a radio station, a defence minister commented on reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to discuss classified information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
The minister said that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that security is a issue in all contemporary cars.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a secret level in any car, because of the growing risks of eavesdropping that exist in every single automobile, to only have those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using every cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Background
The revelation follows reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable buses and bring disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The broader defence environment underscores the significance of robust protocols and caution in all aspects of official operations, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.
