The U.K. government has announced sanctions against Russian agencies and figures “who are attempting to undermine and destabilize Ukraine and its democracyThe group is reportedly responsible for an online network known as Doppelganger, which reportedly targeted Kate Middleton earlier this year amid her health issuesPrincess Kate’s unprecedented absence from the public eye following her abdominal surgery in January created a demand for greater information, quelled when she announced that she was undergoing treatment for cancer
A Russian-based disinformation campaign that reportedly targeted Kate Middleton earlier this year is facing sanctions from the U.K. government.
On Oct. 28, the U.K. government sanctioned three Russian agencies, including Social Design Agency (SDA) and its partner, Structura, for deploying online misinformation, known as Doppelganger, to distort the truth around Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Earlier this year, the Russian-affiliated group allegedly amplified online rumors and conspiracies about Kate’s absence amid her abdominal surgery and subsequent cancer diagnosis, leveraging the public curiosity surrounding her health to further pro-Russian narratives.
British authorities alleged that those involved are behind “a vast malign online network, also commonly known as Doppelganger, which plagues social media with fake posts, counterfeit documents and deepfake material. These deceitful tactics are designed to mask the truth around Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and distract from the true nature of the war.”
Kate Middleton at Southport Community Centre in Southport, England on Oct. 10, 2024.
Danny Lawson – WPA Pool/Getty
In late March, Martin Innes, the director of the Security, Crime and Intelligence Innovation Institute at Cardiff University in Wales, told NBC News and The New York Times that he and his team identified 45 accounts circulating information about Princess Kate in a method suggesting that the messages were affiliated with Doppelganger.
The director alleged that the network did not start the speculation but capitalized on the traffic to disperse pro-Russia content and internet discord.
“It’s not as though these Russia-linked accounts were driving the story; they were jumping on it,” Innes told NBC. “It was already being framed in conspiracy terms, so foreign actors don’t need to set that frame — that’s already there to exploit.”
“It’s about destabilization. It’s about undermining trust in institutions: government, monarchy, media — everything,” he said. “These kinds of stories are ideal vehicles by which they do that.”
The Princess of Wales wasn’t the only member of the royal family reportedly targeted online by Russian actors this year. Just a few days before Princess Kate announced that she had cancer, an untrue story that King Charles had died was reported by Russian media, The Guardian reported on March 18. The conspiracy prompted the British Embassy Kyiv to say on X that the story was fake.
Kate Middleton and King Charles at Trooping the Colour on June 15, 2024.
JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty
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In the statement about the Oct. 28 sanctions from the U.K. government, Foreign Secretary David Lammy, said, “Putin is so desperate to undermine European support for Ukraine he is now resorting to clumsy, ineffective efforts to try and stoke unrest. Today’s sanctions send a clear message: we will not tolerate your lies and interference, and we are coming after you. Putin’s desperate attempts to divide us will fail. We will constrain the Kremlin, and stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes.”
The statement from the government added that the U.S. Canada, France, Germany, Australia and the European External Action Service (of the European Union) “join us in calling out the SDA’s underhand activity globally.”
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