A defense official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the potential threats associated with Chinese vehicles, and staff have been instructed to refrain from discussing classified information in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recent appearance on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD staff have been told not to discuss secret material while riding in China-made vehicles.
The minister stated that the ministry is “examining” cars from China within its fleets, however stressed that security is a issue in all modern cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret level in any kind of car, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in every single automobile, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. This is a wise and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
This revelation comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could allow China to disable buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel has been directing laser beams at RAF pilots, described as a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
This wider defence environment highlights the significance of strong measures and caution in every aspects of government activities, including transport usage to communication practices.
