Chinese tracker hidden in sealed part in UK Government car

[MrMobodies]

Just found this article about them finding a Chinese sim and tracker in a government car.
https://inews.co.uk/news/hidden-chinese-tracking-device-government-car-national-security-2070152

Hidden Chinese tracking device ‘found in UK Government car’ sparks national security fears
By Richard Holmes January 6, 2023 6:09 pm (Updated 8:29 pm)

At least one SIM card capable of transmitting location data was discovered in a sweep of government and diplomatic vehicles which uncovered ‘disturbing things’, a serving security source confirmed A hidden Chinese tracking device was found in a UK Government car, a serving intelligence office has told i

A hidden Chinese tracking device was found in a UK Government car after intelligence officials stripped back vehicles in response to growing concerns over spyware, i has been told. At least one SIM card capable of transmitting location data was discovered in a sweep of Government and diplomatic vehicles which uncovered “disturbing things”, a serving security source confirmed. The geolocating device had been placed into a vehicle inside a sealed part imported from a supplier in China and installed by the vehicle manufacturer, according to the source. Chinese officials dismissed the revelations as “groundless and sheer rumour”, adding: “We are firmly opposed to political manipulation on normal economic and trade cooperation or any smear on Chinese enterprises.”

The discovery raises serious national security concerns amid heightened demands from senior politicians for an urgent review into the “systemic threat” posed by Chinese intelligence. Officials had dismantled the British Government vehicles and swept them deliberately for Chinese tracking SIMs to step up the UK’s defence against espionage from hostile states, according to two intelligence sources. The cars are used to transport Government ministers and diplomats. A serving intelligence officer told i that at least one secret SIM card had been found during the searches. Such cards are capable of tracking the movement of vehicles and sending data back to state-owned suppliers in China had been found during the searches. Cars have been “dismantled surgically down to the last nut and bolt” by intelligence workers and “rather disturbing things” have been found, the officer said.

The source told i: “It [the tracking SIMs] gives the ability to survey government over a period of months and years, constantly filing movements, constantly building up a rich picture of activity. “You can do it slowly and methodically over a very, very long time. That’s the vulnerability.” The searches were carried out amid growing fears that Chinese and Russian intelligence services have been targeting British ministers. Sir Iain Duncan Smith, senior backbench Conservative MP, told i: “I don’t know how much more the UK needs to know about the threat China poses to us all. “Surely it is time to change the integrated review and refer to China as a systemic threat.” Geolocating devices are able to be placed into vehicles without the knowledge of the manufacturers after being concealed inside sealed parts from suppliers in China, according to the serving security source. Electronic Control Units (ECUs), which are responsible for the smooth operation of a vehicle’s engine and predominantly sought from China, are embedded with SIM cards before being sent to car manufacturers as sealed units, according to a serving security source.

The manufacturers fit the parts in cars without opening them because of various warranty and commercial agreements, the serving security source said. The discovery of devices is believed by intelligence sources to be indicative of China’s broad approach to eavesdropping on the West rather than a specific targeting of ministers’ vehicles. Nevertheless, if operational, it would offer China the ability to track a minister’s movements. A second intelligence source confirmed that in recent months a team of government officials put in charge of protecting national infrastructure had been “thoroughly sweeping” government vehicles for Chinese hardware. * Multiple further sources warned that the occurrence of embedded SIMs in government cars was an example of China’s penetration of the supply chains of major car manufacturers.

“It’s more about quantity rather than anything specific,” a former GCHQ analyst told i. “The aim is to put trackers in as many cars as possible and then pinpoint in on sights of interest.” They said: “If you’re stepping back a bit and saying what cars do park outside GCHQ or somewhere like Porton Down then you have the pool of information there if you ever need it.” A former senior intelligence officer said the potential threat is “huge” because foreign intelligence services look to exploit “backdoors” with Chinese technology. He told i: “Can the Chinese track our politicians if they want to? Yes. Can the Russians track our politicians if they want to? Yes. Can they listen to what they’re up to in the cars? If they’re tracking them, and they want to do that, of course they can.”

How SIM cards can be used to track vehicles
SIM cards are commonplace in vehicles, installed by car manufacturers for connectivity purposes, or simply to feed back data on the performance of a car. Most cars will have at least a 2G connection. But intelligence officials warn they have created an increased vulnerability to eavesdropping from hostile states. Most commercial trackers are essentially SIM cards attached to batteries and every geolocation tracker that sends data via a cellular network requires one. A built-in navigation system in a car with the ability to give live traffic updates will need a SIM card to connect to a signal. However, the SIMs allegedly embedded in ECUs by Chinese companies are put there without the car manufacturers’ knowledge and appear to give the Chinese suppliers the ability to connect to the car and collect data – including where it has been, how long it has been stopped in a certain place, and even the way in which it has been driven.

The revelations come after Westminster security was tightened in recent months following fears over Chinese and Russian spies targeting ministers. People employed to work alongside ministers are set to be vetted for their connections to “hostile state actors” such as China. Meanwhile, Government departments were urged to disconnect Chinese-made devices from core computer networks by a Cabinet review, as the Government steps up its defence against high-level espionage.

A spokesperson for the Embassy of China said: “We are firmly opposed to political manipulation on normal economic and trade cooperation or any smear on Chinese enterprises. “The Chinese government always encourages Chinese companies to carry out foreign trade and investment cooperation in line with local laws as well as market principles and international rules. We are firmly against some people’s moves to deliberately overstretch the concept of national security to wear down Chinese enterprises.

“The global industrial and supply chains come into shape as a result of both the law of the market and the choices of businesses. “Smearing and suppressing Chinese enterprises and pushing for decoupling and disrupting industrial and supply chains not only seriously undermines international trade rules, but will fragment the global market, and sabotage the security and stability of global industrial and supply chains.”
 A Downing Street spokesperson said: “As a matter of longstanding policy we would never comment on security matters.” The Cabinet Office refused to comment. Tory MP Iain Duncan Smith has called for China to be referred to as a ‘systemic threat'”‘ Another intelligence source, who until this year spent decades providing security advice to the UK Government, said that all the devices used for “eavesdropping and beaconry” have been SIM based. They added that China are “perfectly capable” of pulling off the widespread tracking of government vehicles.

“China is producing these things and they’ve also got the ability to do it at such scale they could implant a million things,” they said. “We’ve seen things that indicate the intention to do this stuff.” The source said there is an “added danger” because some Government vehicles are rented and there are “serious supply chain vulnerabilities” with mainstream car manufacturers.

A recent freedom of information (FoI) request by the Press Association revealed the Ministry of Defence spent £16.6m on hire cars for staff in the year to November through its Phoenix II vehicle contract. While in the 2021-22 financial year, the Cabinet Office spent £1.619m on hire cars and taxis, according to a separate FOI reply. “There are many assumptions made about supply chain security,” the intelligence source said. “You can’t secure that vehicle, therefore you don’t do anything that needs security within it.” A former forensic vehicle examiner for the UK Government told i that *** “modern vehicles are serious data generators” with “embedded sims transferring data left right and centre”.

He added that manufacturers, many of which have Chinese backing, are “extremely cagey” about the information that is received from vehicles and that it was “completely plausible” data was making its way back to China. In recent years, a number of leading car manufacturers have entered into agreements with Chinese companies accused of spying in the West. ** BMW, Volkswagen, Volvo and Jaguar Land Rover have all partnered with China Unicom to develop 5G connectivity within cars to communicate real-time information with infrastructure, vehicles, and to cloud-based services.

China Unicom was sanctioned by the US in 2021 over “significant” national security and espionage concerns. Volvo refused to comment on a list of questions sent by i “to guarantee the security of our customers,” while a Jaguar Land Rover spokesperson said: “We confirm we have not identified or received any concerns regarding the security of our vehicles or their connected services.” A Volkswagen spokesperson said the “security and safety” of products is a “top priority” and the car manufacturer “sets very high standards for the security and integrity of its vehicles and IT systems”. They added that the company’s ECUs have only limited access to vehicle functions and therefore “limited potential for misuse”, and said an attack on those systems would require “overall knowledge of how several individual systems from different suppliers collaborate”.

They added that communication to any external server from an ECU is “***** only possible via IP addresses or communication links defined by the manufacturer”. The spokesperson said: “We consistently develop our security concepts and protection mechanisms in electronic systems depending on the required protection objective.” Richard Hollis, a former US intelligence community official and director of cyber security risk consultancy Risk Crew, says his team of auditing and testing professionals works with several car manufacturers and has seen first-hand cyber-attacks on supply chains in the automotive industry, sponsored by nation states.

Mr Hollis said most manufacturers “**** have lost certainty in the security integrity of the third-party-provided computerised parts they install in their cars” after finding components had been “altered or modified in the supply chain”. He told i: “Threat actors have recently focused on compromising systems upstream in the supply chain before they are shipped to a factory for installation. Consequentially, manufacturers may be unknowingly installing parts into their products that have already been compromised”. BMW did not respond to requests for comment.

"At least one sim card has been found.
At least one? That sounds to me a bit ambiguous.

* I didn't know large car parts were assembled in China.
I only thought they only made small electronic components.

** I'd imagine there could be other methods like if the webhosting for the manufacturer was hosted somewhere in China or some device in the car "calling home" to it's Chinese manufacturers.

*** Which is why I'd want any connectivity in the car switched off.

**** If they are built in China well I am not surprised.

***** In what country may that be...

Didn't they think that something like this could be likely to happen allowing car parts to be assembled and sealed off in China that are large enough to fit trackers or did they care more about the low cost it had to had offer.

What do you think?

[AVGresponding]

I'm only surprised that anyone is surprised by this   

Meta-data from these kinds of sources has been a thing for more than a decade; I'd be amazed if steps are not already in place to prevent or limit its usefulness to foreign governments (in the context that they all know about it, and all try to stop it, while all try to use it).

As for secret sim cards sealed into parts that shouldn't have them, well that's the sort of thing that should be picked up in routine counter-surveillance sweeps. If it isn't, someone's not doing their job properly.

[Bicurico]

A SIM card is not a GSM/GPRS/3G/4G/5G module.
A concealed tracking device in a sealed spare part? How would it be powered?
Why buy Chinese spare parts for a car?
The quality of the text is pure rubbish and probably fake news.

[MrMobodies]

That was why I thought it sounded ambiguous.
"At least one sim was found" and " The tracking/geolocating device".

As for secret sim cards sealed into parts that shouldn't have them, well that's the sort of thing that should be picked up in routine counter-surveillance sweeps. If it isn't, someone's not doing their job properly.

A few years ago, before Boris was in power, I was speaking to someone about trying to get through to this government department that I was having difficulty and was told "they're sacking everybody, they have already sacked quite a lot of the civil servants and contractors, so there'd probably be very few to take your call."

[AndyBeez]

Is that an apple scented air-freshener dangling from the mirror, or is it an Apple AirTag on the Find My [Diplomat] network?

So will diplomats travel in radio silence to avoid being tracked as they traverse from cell tower to cell tower? Or are they on at least one of their three phones: the diplomatic one, the personal one and the burner?

On a more serious [British] note; "a serving intelligence officer told i that at least one secret SIM card had been found during the searches." I suggest that officer re-reads the Official Secret's Act that they signed. If this was an officially sanctioned (anti China) media leak, then guys I recommend you try not to leak all over your own shoes in the process.

  Clickbait journalism from the BBC, written by (and for) the technically illiterate.

Attached: Just one of a myriad of Chinese made after market vehicle trackers on eBay. All of which use 2G and 3G SIM cards.

[Monkeh]

Clickbait journalism from the BBC, written by (and for) the technically illiterate.

Before you go reflexively slagging off the BBC as if they're the only media outlet in the UK, you may want to note that this is from 'i', which is currently owned by the Daily Mail.

[floobydust]

GPS trackers disguised as an automotive relay have been around for a long time.
I'm skeptical about most spy trackers because of auto body metal shielding the GPS antenna. The hood/bonnet is over top.

The SIM card would be for a cell modem, the thing has a phone number, just trace calls to it. Unless you have to have access to get the datalogs.

[jpanhalt]

Not to be outdone, the US found a Chinese tracker in House Representative Swalwell's bed. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Swalwell )

[AVGresponding]

That was why I thought it sounded ambiguous.
"At least one sim was found" and " The tracking/geolocating device".

As for secret sim cards sealed into parts that shouldn't have them, well that's the sort of thing that should be picked up in routine counter-surveillance sweeps. If it isn't, someone's not doing their job properly.

A few years ago, before Boris was in power, I was speaking to someone about trying to get through to this government department that I was having difficulty and was told "they're sacking everybody, they have already sacked quite a lot of the civil servants and contractors, so there'd probably be very few to take your call."

There are certain departments which are quite good at protecting their core budgets, by various methods. You can never rule out individual incompetence however.

[AndyBeez]

I suspect what they found was long abandoned - But it still makes good copy for the masses who are genuinely convinced that 5G caused Covid.

Not to be outdone, the US found a Chinese tracker in House Representative Swalwell's bed.

She said she was only in there to plump up his pillows

[Bud]

They previously found "Chinese tracking devices" on computer motherboards, didn't they? 

[MrMobodies]

Clickbait journalism from the BBC, written by (and for) the technically illiterate.

Sounds quite disappointing considering it is being paid for by BBC license fee payers.
I wonder what they are trying to do, distract or instill fear in the majority.

I kind of remember something back in about 2016 and unfortunately I can't find it anymore, where there were complaints about the BBC, where the they did an article I think on electrical? cable thefts that were happening around the country and it was suggested that they could use CCA cable instead as it was cheaper and less likely to be stolen? (will the thieves even notice before stealing it?) and that it can be used in communication cables too. The mistake got reported to the BBC and a follow up that they corrected it by removing the references to CCA in the article or something like that.

[Andy Watson]

Clickbait journalism from the BBC, written by (and for) the technically illiterate.

Sounds quite disappointing considering it is being paid for by BBC license fee payers.
I wonder what they are trying to do, distract or instill fear in the majority.

 FFS! YOU linked the original article - it has nothing to do with the BBC.

[MrMobodies]

Sorry I thought AndyBeez was mentioning that the BBC was the source and I should have checked myself first.
I just checked the BBC news site and no I don't see any article about it.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/search?q=chinese+tracker+in+car&d=news_ps

I see "They told i" this and that.
Or maybe I am misunderstanding what is being said.

 I see it was also published in the DailyWail too:
PUBLISHED: 19:48, 6 January 2023 | UPDATED: 19:59, 6 January 2023
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11607735/Chinese-tracking-device-discovered-inside-UK-government-car-senior-politician-slams-Beijing.html

[artag]

The UK government don't have any more credibility than the chinese one.

[Bicurico]

You can buy cheap GPS trackers on AliExpress. They are all manufactured in China. That does not mean it was a Chinese spy applying it to that car.
It could be anyone, for example the minister's wife who was wondering if her husband was really working late or visiting some sex club.

Again, this is fake news at its best. Technically written to impress the ignorant and total lack of real facts.

Any mobile phone can act as a tracking device which is why Huwaei is no longer allowed to sell them in the USA.

Why would the Chinese bother with GPS tracking devices, if they could implement the same on some chips they provide to third party manufacturers.

[MrMobodies]

Again, this is fake news at its best. Technically written to impress the ignorant and total lack of real facts.

The UK government don't have any more credibility than the chinese one.

Joke: So their attempt of at getting more credibility is to accuse and blame China the Chinese government when they find something that is pretty much everywhere.

[SiliconWizard]

The UK government don't have any more credibility than the chinese one.

Yeah, that's the problem here.

[AndyBeez]

Sorry I thought AndyBeez was mentioning that the BBC was the source and I should have checked myself first.
I just checked the BBC news site and no I don't see any article about it.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/search?q=chinese+tracker+in+car&d=news_ps

I see "They told i" this and that.
Or maybe I am misunderstanding what is being said.

 I see it was also published in the DailyWail too:
PUBLISHED: 19:48, 6 January 2023 | UPDATED: 19:59, 6 January 2023
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11607735/Chinese-tracking-device-discovered-inside-UK-government-car-senior-politician-slams-Beijing.html

My bad. Not the BBC. I hope the BBC verify this report through their Disinformation Unit before reporting the technical facts.

[SL4P]

If Inwas trying to,do this, it’s be a sealed fan unit, or overhead cabin light with a supply - in a low shielded part of the body.
unless you’re sweeping for bugs when the unit is active - it’s a fan or light fitting.

[Stray Electron]

A SIM card is not a GSM/GPRS/3G/4G/5G module.
A concealed tracking device in a sealed spare part? How would it be powered?
Why buy Chinese spare parts for a car?
The quality of the text is pure rubbish and probably fake news.

  Are you really that ignorant of how modern cars operate and how they're constructed?

   They are FULL of electronic modules that no one outside of the factory has any idea of how they work internally.  MANY of those modules are made by outside vendors including many made in Malaysia, Singapore, Mexico, Canada, and yes, mainland China.  All of those modules have electrical power provided to them so it would be trivial to power a tracking device and/or some kind of communications device.  Most, if not all of those modules are bought by the trainloads from the OEM and the car manufacturer simply takes the module from the box and slaps it into a car with no inspection. So a company in say, CHINA, could install tracking  equipment in something like an Air Conditioner Control Unit and it could be easily installed in new cars without anyone outside of the OEM knowing that it was there. And those modules are never repaired and are only replaced, so no one would even know that it was there. A lot of the newer automatic temperature control AC controllers also have a small vent that points directly into the passenger compartment, nominally to monitor the cabin air temperature but it would be a perfect place to install a microphone and be able to listen in on any conversations in the car.

  Modern cars also have Data Buses in them so if you have a GPS then that data is available to EVERY device that is connected to the buss. In my OLD 2000 year model Mitsubishi even the vents for the AC, defrost, heat, etc was controlled via the data buss.  One on the drivers side and another on the passenger side. In my 2010 Ford even the radio is operated and fully controlled by the data buss. In my wife's 2016 Hyundai Sonata, even the mirrors and seat position and a number of other things are controlled by the data buss and the car's computer recognizes each different driver based on the key in their pocket and it then adjusts the mirrors, etc to suit that driver. My wife's Sonata also knows where you are at all times and it DOES radio that information to Hyundai. When we had the tire pressure get low in one wheel, the car not only told us that it was low but also gave us directions to the nearest Hyundai dealership!  I don't suppose that you know anything about the systems in modern aircraft that continually report all electrical and mechanical readings back to the aircraft company but I can tell you for a certainty that Hyundai is doing that much, and possibly more.  We get frequent notices from the local Hyundai dealership that tell us the status of the car and when to bring it in for service. I've even seen things like low windshield washer fluid being reported.

   This is not proof that what the OP said is true but it is damm well technologically possible!

[Stray Electron]

GPS trackers disguised as an automotive relay have been around for a long time.
I'm skeptical about most spy trackers because of auto body metal shielding the GPS antenna. The hood/bonnet is over top.

   Many of the body panels of most cars in the US are plastic and have been for a long time. Go look at some pictures of some burned cars, you'll be surprised at little metal that there actually is in them.

[floobydust]

I think those "relays" would end up in a car's fuse block pins facing down, so the hood is over top blocking GPS. For headlamps, horn etc. they would have battery power.

Of course they are spying on politicians, par for the course. It sounds like anti-china rhetoric, probably based on the antics outside the Manchester consulate.
"China’s government has removed a Chinese consul general and five of his staff following the assault on a Hong Kong pro-democracy protester at the Chinese consulate in Manchester, Britain’s foreign secretary said Thursday."
"“In response, the Chinese Embassy, acting on instructions from Beijing, notified His Majesty’s Government that the functions of the Consul General in Manchester have come to an end and he has returned to China,” Cleverly said. He added that the other staff have “either left the United Kingdom or will shortly do so.”"

[BravoV]

The miniature online tracker (some includes voice recording) battery powered that can run for weeks or even months already available for years, just search at Ali Express. Heck, some even have camera included used by perverts. 

Just another gov. official got busted by their spouse of cheating, instead of major embarrassment, why not use the opportunity to boost the Axis of Evil China rhetoric. 

[MadScientist]

Not sure why the Chinese are interested in the uk. Given how dysfunctional th uk has become , it a bit like tracking a madman