Government Official States Ministry of Defence Investigating Security Risk from Vehicles from China, as Staff Instructed to Refrain from Secret Talk in Vehicles.
A defence official has confirmed that the MoD is currently looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made cars, and staff have been advised to avoid discussing classified information in all cars.
Security Advice for MoD Staff
During a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD staff have been told not to talk about classified material while travelling in China-made cars.
He explained that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a concern in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD 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 Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have conversations at a classified classification in any kind of car, because of the increasing threats of surveillance that exist in all automobile, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. This is a wise and sensible thing for anyone concerned about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using all Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Defence Context
This revelation follows reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow China to disable buses and bring chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian intelligence vessel was reportedly directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
The wider defence situation underscores the importance of robust protocols and vigilance in all areas of government operations, including transport use to communication habits.
