An defence minister has confirmed that the MoD is currently investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been advised to avoid discussing secret matters in any cars.
Security Guidance for MoD Personnel
In a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister commented on reports that MoD officials have been told not to discuss secret material while riding in China-made vehicles.
The minister said that the ministry is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however stressed that security is a concern in all contemporary cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, not to have conversations at a classified level in any kind of car, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to restrict those secret talks in secure locations. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, the minister replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Security Background
The announcement follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and cause disruption to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” action by defence officials.
The wider defence situation underscores the importance of robust measures and vigilance in all aspects of government activities, including vehicle use to communication habits.
