Lawyers for Pippa Middleton have told a court that the Duchess of Cambridge’s sister has been caused considerable distress by an alleged hack of approximately 3,000 photos from her iCloud account.
A high court judge yesterday extended an injunction, preventing publication of the photographs to cover any other information that could also have been taken.
Justice Whipple said she would extend the injunction as requested by Middleton’s legal representatives and an order was made yesterday.
Middleton “has good reason to fear that all the information held in her iCloud account has been accessed,” the judge said.
Also present at the Royal Courts of Justice were lawyers representing Nathan Wyatt, who has been named in reports as the 35-year-old man released on police bail after being arrested by officers investigating claims that Middleton’s iCloud account had been hacked. The legal action is against a “person or persons unknown”. Adam Wolanski, counsel representing Middleton and her fiance, James Matthews, told the court: “There’s no suggestion that these photos are in the public domain. The evidence points towards this being a flagrant and dishonest act that has caused the claimant considerable distress.”
Police arrested Wyatt, a website designer, at an address in Northamptonshire late on Saturday on suspicion of a Computer Misuse Act offence. Officers said he had been released on bail pending further inquiries.
Pictures of the Duchess of Cambridge and her children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, are reportedly among the images taken from Middleton.
Private photographs were said to have been offered to the Sun and Daily Mail newspapers via encrypted messaging service WhatsApp. The Sun said it had been approached by someone using a pseudonym and asking for £50,000 within 48 hours.
Middleton has taken legal action in the Queen’s bench division of the high court, where judges analyse claims relating to issues including privacy.
Pippa Middleton: distressed
