An defense minister has confirmed that the MoD is currently investigating the possible threats posed by Chinese vehicles, and staff have been instructed to refrain from discussing secret information in all cars.
Safety Advice for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about classified information while riding in China-made cars.
He said that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but stressed that safety is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars 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, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified classification in any vehicle, because of the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel has been directing lasers at RAF pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
This broader security environment highlights the significance of robust measures and vigilance in every aspects of official activities, including vehicle usage to communication practices.
