An defense official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the potential threats associated with Chinese vehicles, and personnel have been told to avoid talking about secret information in all cars.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
In a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to talk about classified information while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
The minister explained that the ministry is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but noted that security is a concern in all modern cars.
We have a collection of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a secret classification in any car, due to the growing threats of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those secret talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, Pollard replied: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Defence Background
This revelation comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to disable public transport and cause chaos to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been shining lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The wider defence environment highlights the importance of robust measures and caution in all areas of government operations, from transport usage to communication habits.
