Pippa Middleton, the sister of Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, has been granted a court injunction to prevent reportedly hacked photos from being published, her attorneys told CNN on Wednesday.
Images of the duchess along with her children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, are believed to be among the 3,000 images snatched from Middleton’s Apple iCloud data backup account, according to British media reports.
Prince William and Catherine have tried to shield their children from the camera lens and guard their privacy. In an effort to provide the children with a normal upbringing, the couple have released only a few photos of the newest royals through Kensington Palace.
Specialist detectives from London’s Metropolitan Police Service, tasked with investigating the reported breach, arrested a 35-year-old man from Northamptonshire on Saturday.
The man was taken into custody on suspicion of a Computer Misuse Act offense and was held at a south London police station, police said.
The reported breach came to light when two British newspapers said an anonymous seller approached them about the photos. The Sun reported that the thief — who demanded “a minimum of £50,000” (around $65,000) within 48 hours — claimed to also hold images of Middleton at a wedding dress fitting and nude photos of her fiancé, financier James Matthews.
Neither The Sun or the Daily Mail newspapers published the photographs.
Middleton is expected to wed Matthews next year after she announced her engagement in July.
Apple’s iCloud backup service came under attack in 2014 when a thief targeted a number of Hollywood stars. The stolen images, which featured actress Jennifer Lawrence and model Kate Upton, appeared on multiple sites, including 4chan, Reddit and Twitter.
