NDAA-compliant cameras on Royal Navy drone boats sent signals to China for five months

The transmissions exposed a component-level gap in the supply-chain label Western governments use to screen military electronics.

Cameras fitted to Royal Navy K3 Scout uncrewed surface vessels sent automated heartbeat signals to an IP address in China, The Telegraph reported on Aug. 9. The Ministry of Defence stripped the cameras of internet connectivity after a routine cyber vulnerability assessment detected the transmissions.

Heartbeat communications are routine status packets confirming that a device is powered on and connected. They carry no video, but typically include a device identifier, the originating network address and a timestamp, TechTimes explained. Aggregated across a deployment, that metadata can build a pattern-of-life record. No evidence shows that footage left the boats.

The Royal Navy bought 20 K3 Scouts for £12.3 million under Project Beehive. The fleet has served with the Coastal Forces Squadron and 47 Commando Royal Marines since March, leaving roughly five months between entry into service and discovery. The Telegraph put the discovery at the Special Boat Service headquarters in Poole, Dorset, and tied the boats to preparations for potential British missions in the Strait of Hormuz.