An defense official has confirmed that the MoD is currently looking into the possible threats posed by Chinese vehicles, while staff have been instructed to avoid talking about secret information in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about secret information while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister stated that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however stressed that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.
We have a collection of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a very small number.
But whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a secret classification in any kind of car, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that exist in every single automobile, to only have those confidential conversations in secure locations. This is a prudent and sensible thing for anyone concerned about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using every cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Context
This revelation comes as reports 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 chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, described as a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This broader security environment underscores the significance of robust protocols and caution in every aspects of government operations, including transport usage to communication practices.
