An defence official has confirmed that the MoD is currently looking into the potential threats posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been told to refrain from discussing classified matters in any vehicles.
Security Advice for MoD Staff
During a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed reports that MoD staff have been instructed not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He explained that the ministry is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.
Our department has 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 car from another country, what we’ve asked our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any car, due to the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in every single vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in secure locations. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using all cars from China, the minister responded: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Security Context
The announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to disable buses and cause disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly directing lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
This broader security environment underscores the significance of robust protocols and caution in every areas of official operations, from vehicle use to discussions practices.
