An defence official has revealed that the MoD is actively investigating the potential threats associated with Chinese cars, while personnel have been advised to avoid discussing classified matters in all cars.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
In a recent appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about secret information while riding in Chinese cars.
The minister stated that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however emphasised that security is a issue in all contemporary vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any car, due to the growing risks of surveillance that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in protected areas. This is a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Defence Background
The revelation follows reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to switch off public transport and cause chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
The broader defence situation underscores the significance of robust protocols and caution in all aspects of official activities, including vehicle usage to communication habits.
