Government Official States MoD Looking at Potential Threat from Chinese Cars, with Staff Instructed to Avoid Confidential Discussions in Vehicles.
A defense official has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently examining the potential threats posed by Chinese-made cars, and personnel have been advised to avoid talking about secret matters in all vehicles.
Security Advice for Defence Staff
During a recent appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on claims that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss secret information while travelling in China-made vehicles.
The minister stated that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a issue in all modern cars.
We have a fleet of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a very small number.
However regardless of if you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our staff is not to plug MoD technology into their vehicle, to avoid having discussions at a secret classification in any kind of car, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in every single automobile, to restrict those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone worried about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, Pollard responded: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”
Broader Security Context
This revelation follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship was reportedly directing lasers at RAF aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This wider security environment underscores the importance of strong measures and caution in every areas of government activities, from vehicle use to communication habits.
