Former PM Liz Truss is reported to have had her phone hacked by agents suspected of working for Vladimir Putin. Unnamed sources at the Daily Mail have stated that the phone was so incredibly compromised that it has been ‘placed in a locked safe in a secure government location.’
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The hacking occurred when Liz Truss was foreign secretary and was discovered during the Conservative’s summer leadership campaign. It explains why Truss was forced to change her mobile number just before becoming PM despite having had the same number for 10 years.
Sensitive information
It is believed that some messages that were hacked involved criticisms of Boris Johnson made by Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng with sources stating that up to one year’s worth of messages were stolen. The Mail on Sunday reports:
They are also believed to have included highly sensitive discussions with senior international foreign ministers about the war in Ukraine, including detailed discussions about arms shipments.
The hacking could have presented numerous blackmail opportunities for whoever stole the information as well as risks to national security and has caused much consternation amongst other political parties.
Suppressed
When the leak was discovered, it is alleged the outgoing PM, Boris Johnson agreed with his cabinet secretary, Simon Case, to a ‘total news blackout’, as per The Independent. Allies of Truss described how concerned she was that it would damage her chances of becoming PM should it ever leak out that she was the victim of such a serious security breach, adding that she ‘had trouble sleeping’, as per The Mail on Sunday.
However, rival politicians are not happy with the whole affair and are asking serious questions about the protocols that allowed the hacking and the ensuing cover-up to occur, The Independent reports:
Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson Layla Moran called for “an urgent independent investigation to uncover the truth”, adding: “Was Liz Truss’s phone hacked by Russia, was there a news blackout and if so why?
The event shows the importance of cyber security in the modern age, especially during turbulent events on the world stage. The government spokesperson responded, as per The Mail on Sunday:
We do not comment on individuals’ security arrangements. The Government has robust systems in place to protect against cyber threats. That includes regular security briefings for Ministers, and advice on protecting their personal data.
Sources used:
- The Mail on Sunday 'MAIL ON SUNDAY EXCLUSIVE: Liz Truss's personal phone that was hacked by Kremlin agents was so compromised it was locked away in a 'secure location' as experts fear top secret negotiations and private messages may have been leaked
- The Independent 'Liz Truss’s phone ‘hacked by Putin spies who obtained top secret information’'
