UK PM race: Voting delayed as spy agency warns of cyber hackers

Voting by Britain's Conservative Party members to pick the next prime minister has been delayed after the GCHQ spy agency warned that cyber hackers could change people's ballots, The Telegraph reported on Tuesday.

There was no specific threat from a hostile state, and the advice was more general and about the voting process and its vulnerabilities, report added.

As a result of the concerns, the Conservative Party has been forced to abandon plans to allow members to change their vote for the next leader later in the contest, according to the Telegraph.

Postal ballots are also yet to be issued to the around 160,000 party members who have now been warned they could arrive as late as August 11, the report added. The ballots were earlier due to be sent out from Monday, The Telegraph reported.

Former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss are competing in the leadership contest to succeed Boris Johnson as the next British prime minister.

Truss leads in opinion polls among Conservative Party members, who will decide who becomes the next prime minister on Sept. 5 after weeks of voting.

"As you would expect from the UK's national cyber security authority we provided advice to the Conservative Party on security considerations for online leadership voting," the spokesperson added.