A defense official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the possible threats associated with Chinese-made vehicles, while personnel have been told to refrain from talking about classified matters in any vehicles.
Security Advice for MoD Personnel
In a recent interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to talk about secret material while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister stated that the ministry is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however noted that safety is a issue in all contemporary vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified classification in any kind of car, because of the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in every single automobile, to only have those confidential conversations in protected areas. That’s 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 exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Defence Background
The revelation follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian spy ship was reportedly shining lasers at RAF pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
This broader security environment highlights the significance of robust measures and vigilance in all aspects of official activities, from vehicle usage to discussions practices.
