British Navy drone used cameras with Chinese components that sent data to Beijing
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The Royal Navy has stripped internet connectivity from a fleet of K3 Scout surveillance drones after cameras were found sending signals to China.
A routine cyber vulnerability assessment uncovered so-called heartbeat communications passing between the drones' cameras and an IP address located in China.
The vessels, used by the Coastal Forces Squadron and 47 Commando, form part of a £12 million fleet purchased since March 2026.
Kraken Technology Group, the British defence contractor that supplied the K3 Scout drones, sourced the cameras from a third-party manufacturer based overseas.
The company had reportedly given assurances about the security of those components before they were ever fitted onto the vessels.
“We are aware that some third-party, NDAA-compliant cameras had a small number of components originating from outside the UK,” said a Kraken Technology Group spokesman.
“After a full audit by both Kraken and the Royal Navy we are confident no sensitive information has ever been shared outside of intended channels and any potential vulnerabilities have been identified and closed.”
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Despite that reassurance, Kraken later admitted that checks on the origin of the components had failed and confidence in the platform had been lost entirely.
The Ministry of Defence maintained that its own networks and systems had not been affected by the discovery in any way.
"A thorough investigation found no evidence of MoD data or systems being compromised," said a spokesman for the Ministry of Defence.
The K3 Scout, designed to carry a 600kg payload and operate continuously for 30 days, has also been bought by the US Special Operations Command.
It has also taken part in a series of Nato trials in the Baltic Sea alongside allied navies from the region.