Russia has launched a disinformation campaign against French presidential candidate Philippe
The Russian disinformation network “Storm-1516” attempted to influence the upcoming presidential election in France by launching a campaign against the country’s former prime minister and presidential candidate, Édouard Philippe.
According to him, false information about Philippe’s health began circulating on social media this week. The details of these posts, as well as the specific indicators linking them to the “Storm-1516” network, have not been disclosed.
French intelligence agencies noted that this is the first documented operation by a Russian disinformation network directed specifically against a French presidential candidate.
At the same time, an AFP source emphasized that such information campaigns often go unnoticed by the general public because they typically use narratives that are easily debunked.
Édouard Philippe, who served as Prime Minister of France from 2017 to 2020, has announced his intention to run in the 2027 presidential election. He is one of the first French politicians to officially announce his intention to run for the office of head of state.
The “Storm-1516” network has previously been linked to Russian influence operations aimed at spreading disinformation in Western countries. Its activities focus on creating and spreading fake news via social media and other online platforms.
A source in the French security services reported this to AFP.
As a reminder, over the past year, a group of Russian hackers has been conducting a large-scale cyberespionage campaign against American nuclear scientists, defense contractors, and government agencies.
The Russian hacking group Fancy Bear, which is linked to Russian military intelligence, compromised more than 280 email accounts belonging to government and military institutions in NATO countries and the Balkans.
Prior to this, hackers gained access to data from the Booking.com website, the company reported. The attackers were able to obtain information about customer reservations, and some users received emails on Sunday notifying them of a possible data breach.
