An defense official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively investigating the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been told to avoid discussing classified information in any vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
In a recently aired appearance on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD staff have been told not to discuss classified information while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister explained that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a issue in every modern cars.
We have a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified level in any kind of vehicle, due to the increasing threats of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for anyone worried about security.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using every cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
This revelation comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
The wider defence environment underscores the significance of robust measures and caution in every aspects of government activities, including transport use to communication practices.