Chinese hackers allegedly targeted the mobile phones of senior officials in the UK government over a three-year period, according to a report in the Daily Telegraph. The newspaper claims the spying operation, which ran from 2021 to 2024, was aimed at close aides of former prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, as well as current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
The Telegraph’s account suggests the hack was part of a broader Chinese intelligence campaign to access political communications at the heart of government. It said the operation focused on Downing Street phones and was tied to a wider effort, known as “Salt Typhoon,” targeting telecommunications networks. The report also notes that senior officials were allegedly unaware of the scale of the intrusion at the time.
However, senior sources who served in government during the period disputed the claims, saying they would have been informed if MI5 had uncovered a surveillance operation within the corridors of power. Security officials acknowledged that China has long targeted UK telecommunications infrastructure but downplayed suggestions that these efforts had been successful in penetrating government communications.
One security source told the Telegraph that UK intelligence services investigated whether China could access metadata from Britain’s telecom networks after US authorities revealed Chinese infiltration of American phone systems. The source added there was no evidence the so-called Salt Typhoon operation had succeeded in the UK.
The alleged hacking claims come as Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer prepares to visit China this week, aiming to rebuild ties with Beijing and promote economic cooperation. Critics of the trip argued that the allegations demonstrate the need for the UK government to reassess its approach to China.
Alicia Kearns, a shadow minister for national security and one of the alleged targets in the reported Westminster spy case, said the claims showed the government was failing to stand up to Beijing. “How much more evidence does this government need before it ends its simpering to Xi and stands tall as the great country we are and defends us?” she said.
Experts cited in the Telegraph warned that China has long sought political intelligence on UK MPs and decision-making processes. Dakota Cary, from the Atlantic Council’s Global China Hub, said the Salt Typhoon campaign aimed to penetrate telecom networks and monitor communications between individuals.
Yet a former Whitehall figure told the Telegraph that even if phones were hacked, the Chinese would not have gained access to classified government information. The official stressed that UK rules require government officials to assume their mobile devices could be targeted, and therefore sensitive discussions must be conducted through secure government networks.
The report follows previous incidents in which ministers’ phones were suspected of being compromised. In 2022, Liz Truss’s phone was reported to have been hacked while she was foreign secretary, with Russian agents suspected. In 2021, Boris Johnson was advised to stop using his private mobile phone after concerns the number had been exposed online. Johnson initially claimed he could not provide WhatsApp messages to the Covid inquiry, although technical experts later recovered relevant messages from the device.
