A defence official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is actively investigating the possible threats posed by Chinese cars, while personnel have been instructed to refrain from talking about classified matters in any vehicles.
Security Advice for Defence Staff
In a recent appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about secret information while travelling in Chinese cars.
He explained that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, however emphasised that security is a issue in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a classified level in any kind of car, because of the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in all automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, Pollard replied: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Security Context
The revelation comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
The wider security environment highlights the significance of strong protocols and caution in all aspects of official activities, from vehicle use to discussions habits.
