A defense minister has stated that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the possible security risks associated with Chinese vehicles, while staff have been advised to avoid talking about secret matters in all cars.
Security Guidance for Defence Staff
During a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to talk about classified material while riding in Chinese cars.
He stated that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however noted that security is a concern in every modern cars.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles account for a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a secret level in any vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those secret talks in secure locations. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Defence Background
This announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to switch off buses and bring disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
This wider security environment highlights the importance of robust measures and vigilance in every aspects of government activities, including transport usage to discussions practices.
