A defence official has revealed that the MoD is actively investigating the possible security risks associated with Chinese-made vehicles, and staff have been instructed to avoid talking about secret matters in any cars.
Safety Advice for MoD Personnel
During a recently aired appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on claims that MoD officials have been told not to talk about classified material while riding in China-made vehicles.
He said that the ministry is “investigating” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but stressed that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of vehicles in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence technology into their car, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any car, due to the increasing risks of surveillance that exist in every single automobile, to only have those confidential talks in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for anyone concerned about security.
After it was suggested that it would be wise for the MoD to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard responded: That is precisely what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Background
This announcement follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese electric buses, which could allow China to switch off public transport and cause disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship was reportedly directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “highly dangerous” act by defence officials.
This wider defence environment highlights the significance of strong protocols and vigilance in every areas of official operations, including transport usage to communication practices.
