Chinese-made rental cars recorded sensitive data during Norwegian military exercise: Report

New Delhi: Chinese-made rental vehicles used during a Norwegian military exercise recorded sensitive information, including access codes to secure facilities and movements of military personnel, raising fresh concerns over the security risks associated with connected vehicles and their data-collection capabilities, a report has said.

The issue came to light during a security exercise held at Oslo Airport between September 14 and 18, according to a report by Norwegian newspaper Dagens Naeringsliv cited by South China Morning Post.

Soldiers waiting in vehicles reportedly accessed the cars' onboard systems and found videos captured by built-in cameras and sensors.

The recordings allegedly showed personnel entering and exiting vehicles, routes taken during the exercise and even codes used to access military facilities.

The vehicles involved were rental cars supplied by Hertz Norge, with at least two identified as Deepal models manufactured by Chinese state-controlled automaker Changan, the report stated.

Norwegian Home Guard spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Per Gunnar Grosberghaugen confirmed that soldiers found videos stored within the vehicles' systems. However, authorities said it remains unclear whether any of the recordings were transmitted to third parties or stored on external servers.

The incident has intensified concerns about the growing use of internet-connected vehicles by government agencies and military organisations.

Modern vehicles increasingly rely on cameras, sensors and software systems that continuously collect and process large volumes of data, prompting questions about where such information is stored and who may have access to it, as per the report.

Despite discovering the recordings during the exercise, military personnel reportedly continued using the vehicles until the operation concluded because suitable alternatives were unavailable. The stored videos were subsequently deleted.

Norwegian defence authorities indicated that they do not currently favour a blanket ban on Chinese-made vehicles, arguing that the potential security benefits may not outweigh the operational challenges.

Instead, they are considering site-specific restrictions, including prohibiting vehicles equipped with cameras and advanced sensors from accessing particularly sensitive locations, regardless of the country of origin, the report noted.

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