An defense minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been instructed to avoid discussing secret information in any cars.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
In a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister addressed reports that MoD staff have been told not to discuss classified information while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister said that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, however stressed that safety is a concern in every contemporary cars.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re driving a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their car, not to have conversations at a secret level in any vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, the minister responded: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Wider Security Background
This revelation follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable China to disable buses and bring chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship has been directing lasers at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
This broader security situation underscores the importance of robust protocols and vigilance in all areas of official activities, from transport usage to communication habits.
