Former British Prime Minister Liz Truss’ phone is said to have been hacked by suspected secret agents working for Russian President Vladimir Putin. That happened when she was still Minister of Foreign Affairs. The British newspaper Daily Mail revealed this on Saturday. British quality newspapers such as The Guardian have already confirmed that an investigation will be launched.
The cyber spies gained access to “top secret details” of talks with international allies. They also got access to private messages that Truss exchanged with her good friend Kwasi Kwarteng, who would later become minister of finance for a short time. According to the Mail, the intercepted messages to foreign colleagues were about the war in Ukraine, including information about arms deliveries.
The paper wrote that the hackers were able to download messages on Truss’s phone for almost a year. The break-in was discovered during her campaign to become British Conservative leader and Boris Johnson’s successor as Prime Minister. The Daily Mail also writes that Prime Minister Boris Johnson was immediately informed and that it was decided to proceed with a total “news blackout”.
A government spokesperson on Saturday declined to comment on “security measures for individuals”, but said the government is doing everything it can to prevent cyber threats to ministers.
“It is essential that all these security concerns are the subject of investigations and are addressed at the highest level,” said Labor MP and shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper.
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