People’s Liberation Army desperate to drive to work with all the style and panache offered by Elon Musk’s overhyped cars are apparently out of luck. Citing concerns about “national security”, the Chinese government has reportedly banned the use of Tesla vehicles by state and military workers on certain government properties.
As per reports of the Wall Street Journal and BloombergThe People’s Republic of China is reportedly concerned that Tesla’s high-tech cars could be a source of data breaches or foreign espionage. Of particular concern is the large number of internal sensors and cameras installed in Tesla vehicles – which could be used to send sensitive data “back to the US,” government officials are concerned.
The injunction related to the ban is reportedly issued by the Chinese military and prohibits government officials from using the vehicles on certain government and military properties, as well as from “Driving to residential complexes for families of staff working in sensitive industries and government agencies.” The ban follows on the heels of a Tesla “government safety assessment” by the government, WSJ reports, which apparently did not go so well.
The review concerns were raised about the data collected by the vehicles and Tesla – including the car’s location data and cell phone contact lists that are synchronized with the car’s internal systems.
G / O Media can receive a commission
We recently covered how the modern car is basically a wealth of personal data (which can be shared, sold, or stolen), so China’s concerns may not be without merit.
Plus, Tesla has had a handful dubious security incidents over the years. In 2016, security researchers – no less in China –demonstrated that they could remotely hack into the company’s cars via Wi-Fi; the hackers had the ability to use the brakes, open the trunk and turn the car windshield wipers on and off. A recent episode In which a hacker gained access to hundreds of the company’s internal security cameras through a third-party provider has also raised concern.
The ban is also indicative of how the tech industry has become a domain of the political conflict between the US and China. Under President Trump, the US moved to acting aggressively against any Chinese technology company that viewed it as a threat to “national security” – in effect, blacklisting dozens of companies and trying to denounce their access to the American public, while at the same time cutting them off from financial investment. That China would respond in the same way seems about the same for the course.