An defence minister has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is actively looking into the potential threats associated with Chinese cars, and personnel have been told to refrain from talking about classified matters in all vehicles.
Safety Guidance for Defence Staff
During a recently aired interview on LBC, a defence minister commented on reports that MoD staff have been told not to discuss classified information while riding in China-made cars.
The minister explained that the ministry is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, but noted that security is a concern in every contemporary vehicles.
Our department has a collection of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles represent a tiny fraction.
But regardless of if you’re traveling in a vehicle from China or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD technology into their car, to avoid having discussions at a classified level in any vehicle, due to the increasing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all vehicle, to restrict those confidential talks in secure locations. This is a wise and sensible thing for everyone worried about safety.
After it was put to him that it would be wise for the MoD to stop using all cars from China, the minister responded: That is exactly what we’re investigating at the moment.”
Broader Defence Context
The revelation comes as reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the UK to the presence of dual-use kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to disable public transport and bring chaos to transport systems.
Additionally, a Russia spy ship has been directing laser beams at Royal Air Force aircrew, described as a “highly dangerous” action by government representatives.
The broader security environment underscores the importance of robust protocols and caution in every areas of official operations, from vehicle usage to communication practices.
