An defense minister has stated that the MoD is actively looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese cars, and staff have been told to avoid discussing classified matters in all cars.
Security Advice for Defence Personnel
In a recently aired appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that MoD staff have been instructed not to talk about classified information while travelling in China-made cars.
He stated that the MoD is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but noted that safety is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles account for a very small number.
However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their car, not to have conversations at a classified level in any kind of car, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in all vehicle, to only have those confidential conversations in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about security.
After it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, the minister replied: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Context
The announcement comes as reports 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 switch off buses and bring chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been shining lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
This wider security situation highlights the significance of robust measures and caution in every aspects of government activities, including transport use to discussions practices.
