A defense minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese cars, and personnel have been advised to avoid talking about classified matters in all cars.
Security Guidance for MoD Staff
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to talk about classified material while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He stated that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however noted that security is a issue in all modern vehicles.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, not to have conversations at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, because of the growing threats of surveillance that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone worried about security.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to stop using all cars from China, the minister replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Defence Background
This revelation follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off buses and cause chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.
This wider defence situation underscores the significance of robust protocols and caution in every areas of official activities, from vehicle usage to discussions practices.
