French presidential hopefuls and a prominent lawmaker have filed legal complaints after becoming targets of coordinated disinformation campaigns linked to Russian intelligence, authorities and the victims confirmed on Tuesday.
Gabriel Attal filed a complaint after deepfakes and fabricated news reports falsely claimed the former prime minister had been hospitalised or diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. His lawyers warned the content could undermine the integrity of the 2027 election. Separately, researchers identified a network dubbed Matryoshka that also targeted Édouard Philippe with health-related smears, while French financial prosecutors are investigating Philippe over alleged misuse of public funds tied to a contract in Le Havre.
European Parliament member Raphaël Glucksmann said France's SGDSN intelligence body identified the attacker as Storm-1516, a group directed by Russia's GRU military intelligence. The Paris prosecutor's office has opened an investigation. The Matryoshka network previously ran a similar operation ahead of German state elections scheduled for September.