The members of the People’s Liberation Army desperate to drive to work with all the style and elegance provided by Elon Musk’s exaggerated cars are apparently out of luck. Citing “national security” concerns, the Chinese government has banned the use of Tesla vehicles by state and military officials on certain government properties.
By reports from Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg, the People’s Republic of China is reportedly concerned that Tesla’s high-tech cars could be a source of data leakage or foreign espionage. A particular concern is the high number of internal sensors and cameras installed in Tesla vehicles – the kind that could be used to channel confidential data “back to the United States”, government officials worry.
The ban-related order was reportedly issued by the Chinese military and restricts government officials from using vehicles on certain military and government properties, as well as “Driving in housing estates for families of employees who work in sensitive industries and state agencies.” The ban follows the leaps in Tesla’s “government security review” by the government, WSJ reports, the type that apparently did not go very well.
The review raised concerns about data collected by vehicles and Tesla – including vehicle location data and cell phone contact lists that are synchronized with the car’s internal systems.
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We recently approached as the modern car is basically a treasure trove of personal data (the kind that can be shared, sold or stolen), so China’s concerns are not potentially without merit.
In addition, Tesla had a handful of dubious security incidents over the years. In 2016, security researchers – in China, no less –demonstrated that they could remotely hack company cars over their wi-fi; hackers had the ability to pump the brakes, open the trunk and turn the windshield wipers on and off. ONE recent episode where a hacker was able to gain access to hundreds of the company’s internal security cameras through a third-party provider also raised concerns.
The ban is also an indication of how the technology industry has become a domain of the political conflict between the U.S. and China. Under President Trump, the US has moved to aggressively repress for any Chinese technology company, it considered it a “national security” threat – effectively blacklisting dozens of companies and trying to censor their access to the United States public, while cutting them off from financial investment. The fact that China responds in kind seems normal.