The Israeli Ministry of Defense has suspended the supply of Chinese electric vehicles to army officers due to concerns over data collection via built-in sensors and communication systems.
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According to Ynetnews, the official purchase of vehicles from Chinese manufacturer BYD for Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers was cancelled.
The ban followed multiple warnings from cybersecurity experts who emphasized that Chinese vehicles could be used as tools for espionage.
The Israeli Ministry of Defense had already received over 600 Chinese vehicles, including the MG ZS EV and the Chery Tiggo 8, which were already being used by IDF officers as official vehicles.
However, the new BYD Atto 3 electric vehicles, which were intended for IDF lieutenant colonels, were not put into service after their electronic components were inspected.
The e-Call system, an automatic emergency communication feature, was disabled in the received vehicles to minimize the risk of information leaks. Nonetheless, experts warn that this may not be enough.
According to Dr. Harel Menashri, one of the founders of the cybersecurity department of Israel’s Security Agency (Shabak), Chinese cars should be considered mobile intelligence platforms, capable of collecting audio, video, geolocation, and biometric data and transmitting it to servers in China.
Photo and video: Great Wall. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
