A defence official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the potential security risks associated with Chinese vehicles, while staff have been told to refrain from talking about classified information in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired interview on LBC, Luke Pollard commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been told not to discuss secret material while riding in China-made cars.
He said that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but stressed that safety is a issue in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a secret level in any kind of car, due to the increasing risks of eavesdropping that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those secret talks in secure locations. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: That is precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
The revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been directing lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
The broader defence environment underscores the significance of strong measures and vigilance in all aspects of official activities, including transport usage to communication practices.
