An defence official has confirmed that the MoD is actively investigating the potential security risks posed by Chinese cars, and personnel have been advised to avoid talking about secret matters in all cars.
Safety Guidance for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to talk about classified material while travelling in Chinese vehicles.
He said that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however stressed that security is a issue in all modern cars.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
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 devices into their car, not to have conversations at a classified level in any kind of vehicle, because of the growing threats of surveillance that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in protected areas. That’s a wise and sensible thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Defence Context
The announcement comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable China to disable buses and cause chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” action by defence officials.
This wider security situation highlights the importance of robust protocols and caution in every areas of government activities, including transport use to discussions practices.
