There have been preliminary reports from Downing Street on Sunday (October 22) that British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's long-time personal phone number was compromised after audio of his answerphone message responding to social media pranksters was published.
According to revelations reported by The Sun, the breach was the latest in a series of cybersecurity issues plaguing Number 10 after former prime minister Boris Johnson was forced to change his mobile number while in office after a similar online scare.
The Guardian identified the pranksters of the Johnson phone breach as the popular gossip newsletter Popbitch.
The Sun: Sunak's Breached Personal Number was Used While Chancellor
The Sun's report also verified that Sunak's compromised number was the same one he has used for many years, including his time as Chancellor under Johnson and his Conservative Party leadership election run last year in the wake of Liz Truss's short tenure. It was also reported that he was given a new separate number when he became prime minister.
However, the online video that surfaced on Sunday appeared to show that Sunak's number continued to be in operation.
It was previously reported that Sunak was unable to hand over some WhatsApp messages to the COVID inquiry sent to and from the number in question as he has not backed them up after changing phones several times.
Downing Street has declined reporters' requests for further comment.
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