The colleagues, which included a number of MPs, their staff members and one political journalist, were subsequently targeted by a “spear phishing” scam which saw them recieve flirtatious messages and explicit images from someone calling themselves either “Charlie” or “Abi”.

Wragg told the Times he was “scared” that the man “had compromising things on me”.

He said he was “mortified” about the incident and apologised for his “weakness”.

The MP for Hazel Grove said: “They had compromising things on me. They wouldn’t leave me alone. They would ask for people.

“I gave them some numbers, not all of them. I told him to stop. He’s manipulated me and now I’ve hurt other people.

“I got chatting to a guy on an app and we exchanged pictures. We were meant to meet up for drinks, but then didn’t.

“Then he started asking for numbers of people. I was worried because he had stuff on me. He gave me a WhatsApp number, which doesn’t work now.”

Wragg has already announced his intention to stand down at the next election, but he may be forced to sit as an independent if the Conservative whip is removed as a result of the incident.

Leicestershire Police has opened an investigation into a report of “malicious communications after a number of unsolicited messages were sent to a Leicestershire MP last month”.

The individuals affected, identified by Politico, each reported encounters which bore striking similarities to each other. In a number of cases, explicit photos were sent.

Head of the Cybersecurity Institute at the University of Liverpool, Dominik Wojtczak, said he thinks the messages were part of a “spear phishing attack”.

This form of cyber attack is a highly personalised form of phishing which aims to collect compromising details about a victim.

He said: “The purpose is most likely to simply obtain indecent images of the victims and then blackmail them”.

Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle wrote to all MPs and staff this week to tell them that the parliamentary security department is conducting an investigation into the incident, urging anyone with knowledge of the messages to “come forward…and share the details and any concerns.

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He said that parliamentary authorities will “work closely with partners in government to analyse and understand the nature of these messages and any related security risk.”

A parliamentary spokesman told the Times: “Parliament takes security extremely seriously and works closely with government in response to such incidents.

“We provide members and staff with tailored advice, making them aware of security risks and how to manage their digital safety.

“We are encouraging anyone affected who has concerns to contact the Parliamentary Security Department.”