During a Norwegian National Guard exercise focused on protecting Oslo’s airport in a wartime scenario, soldiers discovered that some rental cars had recorded their movements, passengers and the security codes entered at military access points, Norwegian newspaper Dagens Næringsliv reported. At least two of the vehicles were Chinese-made Deepals supplied by First Rent A Car Norway. The recordings were erased from the cars, but it is not known whether copies were stored elsewhere or transmitted outside the vehicles.
The cars were provided under a nationwide framework agreement signed in 2024 by the Norwegian Armed Forces’ logistics organization. It runs through 2028 and has a maximum value of 350 million Norwegian kroner, roughly €33 million. First Rent A Car Norway is the country’s Hertz operator, working as a franchise rather than a direct subsidiary. Zhejiang Geely Holding Group is its largest shareholder.
Norwegian authorities have not found evidence that Chinese officials accessed the recordings. The concern raised by the episode is that military personnel used connected vehicles without knowing what data they collected, where it was kept or who could access it. The defense materiel agency declined to disclose the contract’s requirements for GPS, cameras, sensors, remote access and data storage, citing national security. Norway’s security services have previously warned about Chinese-owned or Chinese-made vehicles; an internal inquiry in late 2025 also found that some electric buses in the country could be shut down remotely from China.