UK Royal Navy drone camera reported to have sent data to China

British authorities have reported that a camera mounted on a Royal Navy unmanned surface vehicle (drone) was found to have sent data to an IP address in China, according to The Telegraph newspaper. The equipment is a K3 Scout drone supplied by British defence contractor Kraken Technology Group. However, the company obtained the camera from a third party that had provided security assurances for the device. According to The Telegraph, the surveillance camera on the drone was equipped with a Chinese-made component. An investigation into the drone revealed the camera transmitted ‘system health signals’ — data confirming the device was connected to the network and functioning normally — to an IP address in China. The Ministry of Defence subsequently disconnected the device from the internet after discovering the breach, though a spokesperson said the investigation found no evidence that sensitive data had been transmitted abroad. The Royal Navy has been using the equipment since March 2026, and the British government had included the device in a proposed defence package to support freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. Previously, the Chinese Embassy in London told RIA Novosti that certain parties in the UK were always attempting to distort facts and fabricate so-called ‘espionage cases’ to smear China.