Government Official Says Ministry of Defence Looking at Potential Threat from Chinese Cars, as Personnel Instructed to Avoid Secret Talk in Vehicles.
An defense official has stated that the MoD is currently investigating the potential threats posed by Chinese cars, and staff have been advised to avoid discussing secret matters in all cars.
Safety Advice for MoD Staff
During a recent interview on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD officials have been told not to discuss secret material while riding in China-made vehicles.
He said that the MoD is “examining” cars from China within its vehicle pools, but emphasised that safety is a concern in every modern vehicles.
We have a fleet of thousands of vehicles in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.
But whether 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 vehicle, not to have conversations at a secret classification in any kind of car, due to the growing threats of eavesdropping that are present in every single vehicle, to only have those secret talks in protected areas. That’s a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about security.
When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to cease using every cars from China, Pollard replied: That is precisely what we’re investigating at the present time.”
Broader Security Background
The revelation follows claims from Norway and Denmark have alerted the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could enable China to switch off public transport and cause chaos to transport systems.
Furthermore, a Russia spy ship was reportedly directing laser beams at RAF pilots, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
This broader security situation underscores the significance of strong protocols and caution in every aspects of official operations, including vehicle usage to communication practices.
