A defense official has confirmed that the MoD is actively examining the potential security risks posed by Chinese vehicles, and staff have been advised to refrain from discussing classified information in any vehicles.
Security Guidance for Defence Personnel
In a recent interview on a radio station, a defence minister addressed reports that MoD officials have been told not to talk about secret material while travelling in Chinese cars.
The minister explained that the MoD is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but emphasised that safety is a concern in every contemporary cars.
We have a fleet of tens of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our people is not to plug MoD devices into their car, not to have conversations at a classified classification in any vehicle, because of the increasing risks of surveillance that are present in all automobile, to restrict those secret talks in secure locations. This is a prudent and sensible thing for everyone worried about security.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, the minister replied: ‘That’s exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Background
The announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the presence of multi-purpose shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russian spy ship has been shining laser beams at RAF aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
The broader security situation highlights the importance of robust protocols and caution in every areas of government operations, including transport usage to communication practices.
