A defense minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the potential security risks posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been advised to refrain from talking about classified matters in all cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recent appearance on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to discuss secret information while riding in China-made cars.
The minister stated that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however noted that security is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified classification in any vehicle, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Defence Background
The revelation comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable buses and cause disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
This broader defence situation underscores the importance of strong measures and vigilance in all aspects of government activities, from vehicle usage to discussions habits.
