Government Official Says MoD Looking at Security Risk from Chinese Cars, with Personnel Told to Refrain from Confidential Discussions in Cars.
An defense official has confirmed that the MoD is actively examining the possible threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been instructed to avoid talking about secret information in any vehicles.
Security Advice for MoD Personnel
In a recent interview on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to talk about classified material while travelling in China-made cars.
He said that the ministry is “examining” cars from China within its fleets, but stressed that security is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their car, not to have discussions at a secret level in any kind of vehicle, because of the increasing threats of surveillance that exist in all vehicle, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Defence Context
The announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship was reportedly directing lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
The wider security environment underscores the significance of robust protocols and vigilance in every areas of official operations, from vehicle use to discussions practices.
