Government Official Says MoD Looking at Potential Threat from Chinese Cars, as Staff Advised to Avoid Confidential Discussions in Cars.
An defense minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made vehicles, and personnel have been advised to avoid talking about classified information in all vehicles.
Security Advice for MoD Staff
During a recently aired interview on a radio station, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to discuss classified material while travelling in China-made vehicles.
The minister said that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but stressed that safety is a concern in every modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug MoD devices into their car, not to have conversations at a classified level in any kind of vehicle, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. That’s a wise and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Defence Background
This announcement comes as claims from Norway and Denmark have warned the UK to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off buses and bring disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel has been shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
This broader security situation underscores the importance of robust measures and vigilance in all areas of official operations, from vehicle use to discussions habits.
