An defence minister has revealed that the MoD is currently looking into the potential security risks associated with Chinese vehicles, and staff have been told to refrain from talking about secret information in any vehicles.
Safety Guidance for MoD Staff
During a recently aired interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard addressed reports that MoD staff have been instructed not to discuss secret information while travelling in China-made cars.
The minister stated that the ministry is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that safety is a issue in every contemporary cars.
We have a fleet of thousands of cars in the Ministry of Defence and Chinese ones represent a tiny fraction.
However regardless of if you’re driving a Chinese car or a car from another country, what we’ve asked our people is not to plug Ministry of Defence devices into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a secret classification in any kind of vehicle, because of the increasing threats of eavesdropping that are present in all vehicle, to restrict those secret conversations in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about safety.
After it was suggested that it would be prudent for the MoD to cease using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: That is exactly what we are looking into at the present time.”
Wider Security Background
This revelation comes as claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the UK to the existence of dual-use shutdown mechanisms in Chinese-made buses, which could allow the Chinese government to switch off buses and cause disruption to public transit.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship was reportedly shining laser beams at RAF pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” act by government representatives.
This broader security situation highlights the significance of robust protocols and caution in every aspects of official activities, including transport use to discussions habits.
