Truss phone was hacked by suspected Putin agents when she was foreign minister - report
Reuters
Published Oct 29, 2022 05:08PM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - Former British Prime Minister Liz Truss's personal phone was hacked by suspected agents working for Russian President Vladimir Putin when she was foreign minister, the Daily Mail reported on Saturday.
Those agents gained access to "top-secret details" of negotiations with international allies in addition to private messages exchanged with Truss's close friend Kwasi Kwarteng, who later became finance minister, the report said.
The messages are believed to have included discussions with senior international foreign ministers about the war in Ukraine, including details about arms shipments, it added.
Up to a year's worth of messages were downloaded, the Mail said, citing unnamed sources.
A British government spokesperson declined to 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 and mitigating cyber threats," the spokesperson added.
The hack was discovered during the Conservative Party leadership campaign that led to Truss becoming prime minister, the Mail reported.
Truss left office last week as prime minister and was succeeded by Rishi Sunak.
The Mail said the messages that fell into foreign hands included criticisms of Johnson made by Truss and Kwarteng, "leading to a potential risk of blackmail".
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.