A defence minister has revealed that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the potential threats associated with Chinese vehicles, and staff have been advised to avoid talking about secret matters in all cars.
Security Advice for Defence Staff
During a recently aired appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on claims that Ministry of Defence staff have been instructed not to talk about classified material while travelling in Chinese cars.
He explained that the ministry is “looking into” Chinese vehicles within its fleets, but stressed that safety is a issue in all modern cars.
Our department has a fleet of thousands of vehicles 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, our instruction to our people is to avoid connecting Ministry of Defence technology into their vehicle, not to have discussions at a classified level in any car, because of the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in every single automobile, to only have those secret conversations in secure locations. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone concerned about security.
When it was suggested that it would be prudent for the ministry 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 follows claims from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the presence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made electric buses, which could allow the Chinese government to disable public transport and cause disruption to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia intelligence vessel has been directing lasers at Royal Air Force aircrew, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.
The wider security situation underscores the significance of robust protocols and caution in every aspects of government operations, including vehicle usage to discussions practices.
