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An defense minister has confirmed that the MoD is currently investigating the potential threats associated with Chinese cars, while personnel have been told to avoid discussing secret information in all vehicles.

Safety Guidance for MoD Personnel

In a recent appearance on a radio station, Luke Pollard commented on reports that MoD officials have been instructed not to discuss secret information while travelling in China-made vehicles.

He stated that the MoD is “investigating” cars from China within its fleets, but stressed that security is a concern in all modern cars.

We have a collection of thousands of cars in the MoD and Chinese ones account for a tiny fraction.

However regardless of if you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a non-Chinese car, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their vehicle, to avoid having conversations at a secret classification in any vehicle, because of the growing risks of eavesdropping that exist in every single vehicle, to only have those confidential talks in secure locations. That’s a wise and reasonable thing for everyone worried about security.

When it was put to him that it would be prudent for the ministry to stop using every Chinese vehicles, Pollard replied: ‘That’s exactly what we are looking into at the moment.”

Wider Defence Background

This announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have warned the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese-made buses, which could enable the Chinese government to switch off public transport and cause disruption to transport systems.

Furthermore, a Russia intelligence vessel was reportedly shining lasers at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” act by government representatives.

The wider security situation underscores the importance of robust measures and vigilance in all areas of official activities, including transport usage to discussions habits.