Chinese-made connected cars enter key Korean military bases as security concerns grow

Chinese-made connected cars that can collect and share location data in real time have been driving in and out of Korean military bases, including key Navy and Army commands, government data found Wednesday.

The military has 135 Chinese-made connected cars registered, 44 of which belong to the Army, 42 to the Navy, 41 to the Air Force, and eight to the Marine Corps, according to military data obtained by Rep. Kim Byung-joo of the Democratic Party.

Connected cars carry equipment such as Lidar, a laser sensor that measures distances to build 3-D maps, and high-precision GPS. They can collect location and spatial data in real time and share it over the internet.

Other countries are already alert to the risk of data leaking through Chinese connected cars, as China's National Intelligence Law explicitly states that all organizations and citizens must support, assist and cooperate with state intelligence work. Data the cars collect could therefore flow to Chinese intelligence authorities in real time.

"We have credible information about a Chinese manufacturer working on Lidar systems for self-driving cars that are intended to scan the car's entire surroundings and transmit the information to a database in China," Estonia's Foreign Intelligence Service said in its 2024 annual report. The agency warned that self-driving cars using Chinese technology could be exploited for intelligence gathering.

Such cars have been moving freely through Korean military facilities. Of the 135 registered China-made vehicles, 118 belong to officers and noncommissioned officers, and 17 access bases for deliveries, construction and inspections.

Separately, unregistered Chinese-made connected cars entered Navy facilities at least 565 times this year alone, according to vehicle entry records the Navy submitted to Kim. The facilities included core Navy units such as the Jinhae Naval Base Command, the Naval Logistics Command and the Submarine Force Command.

In the Army, Chinese-made connected cars are registered at major units including Army Headquarters, the Ground Operations Command, the Second Operations Command, the Special Warfare Command and the Army's missile command.

The military has yet to implement any countermeasures.

"We are reviewing standards on how to handle access by connected cars themselves, including Chinese-made ones," a Defense Ministry official told the JoongAng Ilbo on Wednesday. "It will need to be balanced with individual property rights and other considerations."

The United States and Europe have taken measures to protect themselves from potential espionage using Chinese-made connected vehicles.

Washington has barred manufacturers with ties to China from selling new connected vehicles in the country starting with model year 2027, while the European Union launched a security review in March into whether Chinese connected cars could leak data.

"Starting with key military facilities, the measures that can be taken now, such as restricting access by Chinese-made connected cars and running security checks, should be implemented first," Kim said. "Security standards for all vehicles entering military bases must be reviewed immediately."

BY PARK JUN-KYU [[email protected]]