An defense official has stated that the Ministry of Defence is currently investigating the possible security risks posed by Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been advised to avoid talking about classified matters in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to talk about classified material while travelling in China-made cars.
He stated that the MoD is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but noted that security is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, due to the growing threats of surveillance that are present in every single vehicle, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone worried about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Defence Background
This announcement comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship was reportedly directing lasers at RAF pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The wider defence situation underscores the significance of strong measures and vigilance in all areas of government operations, including vehicle use to communication habits.