Buckingham Palace has more than doubled its taxpayer-funded cyber security spending amid concerns over Russian hackers targeting the Royal Family.
In a major overhaul noted in this year’s Sovereign Grant, the palace has increased its digital services expenditure from £2.4m in 2016-17 to £5.6m in 2025-26.
In a review presented to the government, the palace said the expected costs, which in real terms mark a £1.8m increase, will replace the “ageing” computer systems.
In October 2023, hackers targeted the Royal Family’s official website royal.uk, taking it offline for around an hour and a half.
The pro-Russian hacking group KillNet claimed responsibility, marking it the second time they had claimed to have targeted the royals, after previously attempting to hack Prince William’s website in November 2022.
The group had said it was part of a wider campaign against Western institutions that were supporting Ukraine.
A recent NHS data breach exposed confidential files which are believed to be linked to patients at royal residences including Windsor Castle and Sandringham.
And in 2024, a Russian disinformation network made a series of false claims about the British royal family in its ongoing information war with Ukraine.
Among the incorrect allegations being made by pro-Kremlin campaigners was the suggestion circulating on fake news sites that King Charles had sold his royal residence Highgrove House to Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky for £20m.
The Royal Trustees’ 2026 review noted: “Expenditure also reflects the increasing importance of cyber security, as the threat landscape has evolved.
“The Household has prioritised investment in core capabilities, including the establishment of a dedicated Security Operations Centre and compliance with recognised standards such as the National Cyber Security Centre’s Cyber Essentials scheme and Cyber Assessment Framework.”
The Sovereign Grant is the annual funding allocated by the government to support the King, his household, his travel and the maintenance of royal palaces.
The report does not say if any of the ageing systems have been successfully breached or how many require replacing.
Over the last three years, Buckingham Palace has hired an information security manager and key positions within a separate cyber security team, including a manager role to develop their risk and resilience against attacks.
On Wednesday, Andy Burnham expressed the UK’s “full solidarity” with Germany after Berlin blamed Russia for an attempted drone attack on an airport last month.
The prime minister described the incident, in which an explosive-laden drone was discovered near a Ukrainian aircraft at Leipzig-Halle Airport, as an “egregious and reckless attack”.
Russian officials have engaged in sabre-rattling against Western nations in recent weeks, threatening to strike against the military targets in UK and other countries for providing support to Ukraine.
Mr Burnham has been warned that “vibes are not going to work” on defence policy, over a reported reversal in plans to spend 3 per cent of GDP on defence by 2030.
The chairman of the Commons Defence Select Committee, Labour MP Tan Singh Dhesi, said: “The British people should be under no illusion that the nation faces a significantly increased threat level, especially from Russia, but also we have a US leadership for whom European security is no longer a focus or priority, and that is why it is imperative that we invest in our armed forces in the here and now, rather than be sorry later.”
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