Eight months before the presidential election in France, Russian interference operations targeting candidates are intensifying, although they remain low-profile for now. Within a few days, pro-Russian networks have targeted three official or potential contenders for the Elysee Palace - Edouard Philippe, Raphael Glucksmann and Gabriel Attal, reports Agence France-Presse, BTA reported.
The operations have used fake websites and documents, “deepfake” videos, publications from unidentified profiles and materials imitating the visual identity of famous French media. While these campaigns have had limited impact, French authorities fear they are a harbinger of a much larger intervention as the 2027 vote approaches.
A website that replicates in every detail the hallmarks of a genuine French online media outlet, documents presented as authentic, and a “deepfake” – a fake video of investigative journalist Edouard Plenel. Added to all this are fake social media accounts that spread the claim that journalist Léa Salamé is trying to bribe media outlets to portray her partner Raphael Glucksmann in a favorable light as a potential presidential candidate.
None of this is true, however. The false revelation was fabricated from start to finish, French public radio station France Info reported.
Glucksmann said that in recent days state services had informed him that he had been the victim of a disinformation campaign organized by the group Storm-1516, led by the GRU - Russian military intelligence.
Storm-1516 is a pro-Russian group well known to Viginum - the French state service for surveillance and protection against foreign digital interference. In July 2026, it had already targeted another presidential candidate - former prime minister and leader of the center-right Horizons party, Edouard Philippe, through posts on social media. They made false claims about his health.
Glucksmann, a well-known Kremlin critic, warned that this attack was only a "prelude to what is to come" and predicted that the 2027 campaign would be marked by massive interference. The judicial authorities have launched an investigation into the disinformation operation against him.
After Edouard Philippe and Raphael Glucksmann, it was Gabriel Attal's turn. On August 4, the centrist Renaissance party candidate for the presidential election became the target of a disinformation campaign originating in Russia, according to Le Monde.
The operation used fake reports, videos and front pages that imitated the visual identity of a number of French media outlets - RFI, BFM TV, “France 24“, France Presse, “Parisien“, “West France“, “Libération“ and “Le Monde“, as well as publications in “Ex“ by unidentified profiles. In them, Atal was presented as a person who may suffer from Parkinson's disease.
The operation was detected by “Vizhinom“. The service attributes it “with a high degree of confidence“ to the pro-Russian network “Matryoshka“. “Vizhinom“, which is part of the General Secretariat for National Defense and Security, recommended that presidential candidates not comment publicly on such content, which is often implausible and has very little resonance in the public debate, so as not to provide him with additional publicity.
This did not prevent Atal, who has been actively campaigning in the summer, from urgently calling a press conference after the publication of the information from “Vizhinom“.
“I expect the Kremlin regime to continue conducting interference operations against candidates like me“, the former prime minister told BFMTV yesterday.
“If we do nothing to protect ourselves, the elections could be tainted“, he also warned on RTÉ radio. Atal accused Russia of wanting to “steal“ presidential vote by the French.
His team claims to have taken security measures earlier than his competitors. “We left “Telegram“ and are using a secure application for internal communication,“ said a representative of his entourage.
The government fears that these operations could be a harbinger of what will happen in the coming months. Prime Minister Sébastien Le Corneille wants to make the fight against foreign interference one of the government's priorities before the elections.
At the end of July, the cabinet presented a bill to counter disinformation and protect the presidential vote. Among the measures that will be discussed in the Senate after the start of the new political season is the expansion of the scope of the existing procedure for urgent legal proceedings against fake news. The aim is to be able to request the rapid removal of threatening or misleading content.
Severer penalties are also envisaged for spreading false information in the context of elections. The penalty will be increased from one to three years in prison, and the fine - from 15,000 to 45,000 euros. It could reach up to six years in prison when the interference in the electoral process is carried out “in the service of the interests of a foreign power, company or organization“.
However, part of the left believes that the government does not go far enough and insists that measures be taken against foreign platforms such as “TikTok“ and “Ex“.
Glucksmann called on the French and European authorities “not to shake their hand“ if they have to sanction these social networks. He recalled the suspicions surrounding the far-right candidate Calin Georgescu in the 2024 presidential elections in Romania. After surprisingly coming first in the first round, Georgescu was accused of taking advantage of an illegal campaign in his support organized by Moscow, in particular on “TikTok“. The elections were annulled, and a few months later the pro-European candidate Nikusor Dan won the rerun.
“No sanctions were imposed against “TikTok“, Glucksmann regretted.
The leader of the “Ecologists“ Marine Tondiolier went even further. In an interview with “Libération“, she suggested that access in France to social networks like “Ex“ be temporarily suspended for the campaign period if interference was detected in advance.
Because of the proposal, “Ex“ owner Elon Musk accused her of “betraying France“ and called for her to be "silenced."
In early July, Musk described the candidacy of Marine Le Pen, the leading figure of the far-right National Rally and a favorite in opinion polls, as "the last hope for France."
From a political point of view, the topic is sensitive for the National Rally because of the party's past ties to Russia, including a loan it received from a Russian bank a decade ago. In 2025, however, party chairman Jordan Bardella hardened his tone toward Moscow, describing it as a "multidimensional threat" for France and mentioned Russian interference in particular.
“Russian interference is so ineffective and grotesque that it allows the “victims“, who have all the power to fight it, to make a PR“, said yesterday, “National Assembly“ deputy Jean-Philippe Tanguy. He claims that at the same time, American and Chinese interference is running rampant.
The question remains whether foreign interference can actually influence voters' choices. Its impact is “difficult to determine”, said a few months ago Laurent Cordonier, director of research at the “Descartes“ Foundation – an institute specializing in the study of disinformation. He made this assessment at a roundtable in the Senate dedicated to the risks of digital manipulation before the elections.
With the improvement of artificial intelligence, it is becoming increasingly difficult for journalists to verify the authenticity of content, and for listeners, viewers and readers - to distinguish truth from lies, points out “France Info“ and calls on its audience for maximum vigilance.