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A defence official has confirmed that the Ministry of Defence is currently looking into the possible security risks associated with Chinese cars, while staff have been told to refrain from discussing secret information in all vehicles.

Safety Guidance for MoD Staff

In a recent appearance on LBC, a defence minister commented on reports that MoD staff have been instructed not to talk about secret material while travelling in China-made cars.

The minister said that the ministry is “looking into” cars from China within its fleets, but stressed that safety is a concern in all contemporary vehicles.

Our department has a collection of tens of thousands of cars in the MoD and those vehicles account for a very small number.

However whether you’re traveling in a Chinese car or a car from another country, our instruction to our staff is to avoid connecting MoD devices into their car, to avoid having conversations at a classified level in any car, due to the growing threats of eavesdropping that exist in all automobile, to only have those secret conversations in protected areas. This is a prudent and reasonable thing for everyone worried about security.

After it was put to him that it would be wise for the ministry to cease using all cars from China, the minister replied: ‘That’s precisely what we are looking into at the moment.”

Wider Security Background

This announcement follows reports from Scandinavian countries have alerted the United Kingdom to the existence of multi-purpose kill switches in Chinese buses, which could allow China to disable buses and bring chaos to transport systems.

Additionally, a Russian spy ship has been shining laser beams at Royal Air Force pilots, labeled a “extremely risky” act by defence officials.

This wider defence environment underscores the significance of strong measures and vigilance in every aspects of government operations, from transport use to discussions habits.