Government Official States MoD Investigating Security Risk from Chinese Cars, as Personnel Instructed to Refrain from Confidential Discussions in Vehicles.
An defense official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the possible security risks posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been told to avoid discussing secret matters in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
During a recent appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to talk about secret information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He stated that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but noted that security is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their car, not to have discussions at a secret classification in any kind of car, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in all automobile, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about security.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using every Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Defence Background
This announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
This wider security environment underscores the importance of strong measures and vigilance in all areas of official operations, from transport use to discussions practices.
