Poland shoos smart Chinese cars away from military facilities

Seeking to protect the country’s military facilities from potentially giving away sensitive data, Poland’s Ministry of Defense has banned Chinese smart cars – armed with loads of video and audio recorders – from entering them.

The ministry said this week that it came to this particular decision after conducting a risk analysis of the potential for the many gadgets built into modern vehicles to allow “uncontrolled acquisition and use of data.”

“Modern vehicles equipped with advanced communication systems and sensors can collect and transmit data. Therefore, their presence in protected areas requires appropriate security regulations,” said the ministry in a statement.

The ban additionally prohibits officials from connecting their work phones to infotainment systems in China-made cars.

Cars made elsewhere and equipped with devices capable of recording position, images, or sound will also be subject to restrictions. But, unlike cars manufactured in China, such vehicles will be permitted to enter the protected areas of military installations if certain functions are disabled.

According to the officials, the ban is in line with standards observed by other NATO member states, but it isn’t permanent: Chinese carmakers will be able to undergo a security assessment and pass it.

These regulations don’t apply to publicly accessible military installations such as hospitals, clinics, libraries, prosecutors’ offices, or garrison clubs.

Official vehicles and military equipment belonging to the Polish Armed Forces are also exempt from the restrictions. This, in theory, means that if the Polish military owns China-made cars, they’ll be able to enter the military installations.

Companies such as Volvo or Polestar aren’t Chinese but make some of their models in China: will their cars be subject to the Polish ban?

The ban is not a shocker since most nations don’t allow filming and recording on military premises. The US, for example, has banned the use of software from China and Russia in connected cars, effectively banning vehicles made in both countries.

However, it’s a bit different with European carmakers. Companies such as Volvo or Polestar aren’t Chinese but make some of their models in China: will their cars be subject to the Polish ban?

Either way, Chinese tech companies are already used to bans and restrictions. Many countries have targeted Huawei and ZTE devices, and the US state of Texas has just sued networking equipment company TP-Link Systems for allegedly allowing the Chinese Communist Party to hack into consumers’ devices even as it promised strong security and privacy protections.

Europe, specifically, has also been tightening scrutiny of Chinese technology. Germany recently appointed an expert commission to reassess trade policy toward Beijing and has banned the use of Chinese components in future 6G telecoms networks.

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