An defense official has confirmed that the MoD is currently looking into the potential threats posed by Chinese-made cars, and staff have been told to refrain from talking about classified matters in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for Defence Staff
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, a defence minister addressed claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss secret information while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister said that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, however emphasised that security is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any kind of car, due to the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using every Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
The revelation comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship has been shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
The broader defence situation underscores the importance of robust protocols and vigilance in every areas of official operations, from vehicle use to communication habits.
