Kensington Palace is struggling to protect Princess Kate's privacy in Digital Age - analysis by Cameron Walker
Kensington Palace has said Catherine is unlikely to return to public duties until after Easter.
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Since the late Diana, Princess of Wales was killed in a car crash involving paparazzi on motorbikes, the British media have rarely published unauthorised images of the Royal Family.
However, the rest of the world does not have this so-called 'unwritten rule' and yesterday a US gossip website published the first image of the Princess of Wales since she publicly greeted the crowds on Christmas Day in Sandringham.
The unauthorised photograph, thought to be taken with a long-range camera on a public road near Windsor Castle, shows Catherine sitting in the front passenger seat of a car.
She is wearing dark sunglasses and is being driven by her mother, Carol Middleton, on the way back from the school run.
A significant number of social media commentators do not believe the image really shows Catherine.
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That image, which GB News is not publishing, is the first sighting we have had of the Princess since she underwent abdominal surgery at The London Clinic in January.
At the time, Kensington Palace said Catherine was unlikely to return to public duties until after Easter.
The lack of information since then has created a void, filled by conspiracy theories and speculation on social media.
The publication of paparazzi photographs around the world (apart from here in the United Kingdom) has only added fuel to the fire.
Kensington Palace refused to comment on the paparazzi's image.
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A significant number of social media commentators do not believe the image really shows Catherine, with one Australian TV presenter openly declaring "That is not her!" in front of a live studio audience.
Kensington Palace refused to comment on the paparazzi's image, perhaps to avoid giving the gossip magazine added publicity.
Royal sources have not denied, however, that the image does show The Princess of Wales.
On the one hand, the image has the power to quash the more sinister speculation about the Princess' health.
If she is well enough to travel in a car, it appears her recovery from planned surgery is more or less on track, and we can look forward to seeing her back on public duties later in the year.
But this is a big invasion of Catherine's privacy, and arguably those images are not in the public interest.
Unlike the King, who has openly shared behind-the-scenes images of himself despite his cancer diagnosis, the Princess is not Head of State and can choose what, if anything, she shares publicly.
It is increasingly difficult for the Palace to protect the Royal Family's privacy in the Digital Age.
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It is clear Catherine wishes to remain out of the public eye for the time being, but Kensington Palace can do little to control the intrusive image widely circulating around the world.
The British press may not be publishing, but any British citizen with a smartphone will be able to access the image if they really want to.
It is increasingly difficult for the Palace to protect the Royal Family's privacy in the Digital Age.
But the institution is used to evolving, and I suspect the Digital evolution will be no exception.
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