A defense official has revealed that the MoD is currently looking into the potential threats posed by Chinese-made cars, while staff have been instructed to refrain from discussing secret matters in all vehicles.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
In a recent appearance on LBC, Luke Pollard addressed claims that MoD officials have been instructed not to talk about classified material while riding in China-made vehicles.
He said that the ministry is “investigating” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that safety is a concern in all modern cars.
Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones account for 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 technology into their car, not to have conversations at a classified level in any kind of car, because of the growing risks of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to restrict those confidential talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for everyone concerned about security.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to stop using every cars from China, the minister responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Context
The revelation comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off public transport and bring chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russian intelligence vessel has been directing lasers at RAF pilots, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
This broader security environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and vigilance in every areas of official operations, including transport usage to discussions practices.
