- Questions raised on Chinese espionage via the influx of cars built in China
- Voyages and location, text messages and documents supposed to be at risk
- Connect a phone to a Chinese car was compared to the use of an unknown USB
The British government and military staff have been warned of security problems surrounding the use of Chinese construction cars, according to reports by Paper i.
For example, RAF Wyton staff were invited to park cars built with Chinese components less than two kilometers from the establishment due to concerns about monitoring the NAV and sensors.
Warnings also cover connections between Chinese built cars and their drivers, including Bluetooth connections and even loading the phone via cable.
Chinese cars are the subject of a survey
In addition to detecting location and the environment, microphones in certain cars could potentially be used for listening to the Chinese state. As such, the staff is warned not to connect mobile phones to Chinese manufacturing cars or to discuss work inside them, with large defense companies such as Bae Systems, Rolls Royce, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin and Thales would take protective measures.
The concern is that there is a potential for travel cars of travel, text messages, voice messages and sensitive documents, and the connection of a phone to a car was compared to connect an unknown USB drive to a work computer.
Chinese electric cars in particular have become incredibly popular in the United Kingdom just in recent years, often undervaluating established brands and offering similar levels of quality and standard equipment. However, it is not only Chinese brands that have been affected by allegations – other brands that use Chinese components are also at risk of potential protection measures.
Some cybersecurity experts say that concerns are valid given the history of China espionage. The national intelligence law also requires that Chinese companies help state intelligence on request, so spying via cars is fully plausible. However, on the other hand, there was no spying on cars.
Mike Hawes, head of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, noted: “All manufacturers with cars on sale in the United Kingdom must comply with the relevant regulations on data confidentiality, and electric vehicles are not different.”
