An defence minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively examining the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made vehicles, while staff have been instructed to refrain from discussing secret matters in all cars.
Safety Guidance for MoD Personnel
In a recently aired appearance on a radio station, a defence minister commented on reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been told not to discuss secret material while riding in Chinese vehicles.
He said that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, however noted that safety is a concern in every contemporary cars.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
However whether you’re driving a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their car, not to have discussions at a classified classification in any kind of vehicle, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to only have those secret talks in secure locations. This is a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about safety.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, the minister responded: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Broader Security Context
This announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off buses and cause disruption to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship has been shining lasers at RAF pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
This wider security situation underscores the significance of robust protocols and vigilance in every areas of government activities, including transport use to communication practices.
