An defense official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the possible threats posed by Chinese cars, and personnel have been advised to avoid discussing classified information in all cars.
Security Advice for Defence Staff
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to talk about classified material while riding in Chinese cars.
The minister stated that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that safety is a concern in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug MoD technology into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a classified classification in any vehicle, because of the increasing risks of eavesdropping that are present in all automobile, to only have those confidential talks in protected areas. This is a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using every Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Defence Background
This announcement comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly directing lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
This broader defence environment underscores the importance of strong protocols and vigilance in all aspects of official operations, including transport use to communication practices.
