China targeted the mobile phones of senior officials in Downing Street for years, it was reported on Monday night.
In a sophisticated global espionage campaign, Chinese spies are understood to have targeted the phones of close aides to Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak between 2021 and 2024.
It was suggested the spying operation may have compromised senior members of the government, exposing their private communications to Beijing.
It comes as Keir Starmer leaves for China this week, the first visit by a British prime minister since 2018.
It is unclear whether there was any attempt on the mobile phones of the prime ministers themselves, but sources claimed that China was intent on penetrating the heart of Downing Street.
On Monday night US intelligence sources said the operation, codenamed Salt Typhoon, was ongoing – raising concerns that Sir Keir and his staff may have been exposed.
In October, MI5 chief Sir Ken McCallum warned of ‘escalating’ state threats against Parliament, weeks before an espionage alert about Beijing’s attempts to recruit officials.
Months earlier, the National Cyber Security Centre said China had been targeting critical sectors, including government, since 2021, warning ‘the data stolen through this activity can ultimately provide the Chinese intelligence services the capability to identify and track targets’ communications and movements worldwide’.
Sir Keir Starmer leaves for China this week, the first visit by a British prime minister since 2018
Chinese spies are understood to have targeted the phones of close aides to former Prime Ministers Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak
When the China spy case collapsed last year, it emerged that Beijing had specifically ordered reports about Boris Johnson, Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss.
Prosecutors believed sensitive information on MPs was passed on by parliamentary researcher Chris Cash, 30, to his teacher friend Chris Berry, 33. They both denied the accusations.
But the case against them collapsed when Government advisers refused to call Beijing a national security threat.
Alicia Kearns, shadow minister for national security, said: ‘How much more evidence does this Government need before it ends its simpering to Xi?’
In 2024, the US revealed hacking groups linked to Beijing had gained access to telecommunications companies around the world, giving China access to the phone data of millions of people.
Anne Neuberger, who was a deputy US national security adviser at the time, said the hackers had the ability to ‘record phone calls at will’.
The Telegraph claimed there were ‘many’ hacking attacks on the phones of Downing Street staff and across wider government, particularly during the tenure of Mr Sunak, who was prime minister from 2022 to 2024.
But it remains unclear whether the hackers were successful in obtaining any sensitive information.
A spokesman for the Chinese embassy said: ‘We firmly oppose the practice of politicising cybersecurity issues or accusing other countries without evidence.’
