Government Official Says MoD Examining Potential Threat from Vehicles from China, with Personnel Instructed to Refrain from Secret Talk in Cars.
An defence minister has stated that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the potential security risks posed by Chinese-made cars, while personnel have been instructed to refrain from talking about classified matters in any cars.
Safety Advice for Defence Personnel
In a recent appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on reports that Ministry of Defence officials have been instructed not to discuss classified information while riding in China-made vehicles.
He stated that the MoD is “examining” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but emphasised that safety is a issue in all modern vehicles.
Our department has a fleet of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a non-Chinese car, what we’ve asked our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their car, not to have discussions at a secret classification in any kind of car, because of the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those secret conversations in protected areas. That’s a prudent and sensible thing for anyone worried about safety.
When it was suggested that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using every Chinese vehicles, the minister responded: ‘That’s precisely what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Wider Security Context
This revelation comes as reports from Norway and Denmark have alerted the UK to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese electric buses, which could allow China to disable buses and cause chaos to public transit.
Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining laser beams at RAF pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” action by government representatives.
This broader security situation underscores the importance of strong protocols and caution in every areas of official operations, from transport usage to communication habits.