Undercover reporter used AI photo to access Swedish PM’s wife’s estate

09 June 2026 , 18:29

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Undercover reporter used AI photo to access Swedish PM’s wife’s estate

A journalist managed to get accepted as a volunteer at an estate owned by the wife of Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, using a fake name and an AI-generated photo.

Aftonbladet reporter Lisa Röstlund exposed weaknesses in the prime minister’s security system by signing up to volunteer at Vängården Fållökna, an estate owned by his wife, Birgitta Ed.

The report says Sweden’s first lady invites volunteers to help renovate the building, offering them access to an “influential network” in return.\

For her application, the journalist used a fake name and her own photo altered with artificial intelligence. She received confirmation from the estate almost immediately.

When she arrived at Vängården Fållökna, she encountered officers from the Swedish Security Service (Säpo), who did not check her documents or belongings. As a result, the journalist was able to bring a voice recorder into the building.

Once inside the estate, Röstlund was able to spend the entire day near the prime minister and his wife. Sweden’s first lady even took the journalist into a private bedroom and left her there alone for several minutes.

During the visit, the reporter also heard a significant amount of non-public information about the daily routine of the prime minister and his family, as well as details related to their security.

Wilhelm Agrell, professor emeritus of intelligence analysis at Lund University, said the incident showed a catastrophic state of security around Sweden’s head of government.

“You get a whole range of risks. It becomes so easy to get inside, get close to a key person and be able to act for several hours. You could install listening equipment... place some other device, a bomb or something else, anything. Or, if you wanted to scout the entire area, the building and everything else for a future intrusion... The entire security setup there is fundamentally broken,” the expert said.

The Swedish Security Service declined to comment in detail, saying it is responsible for protecting the prime minister personally, but not for guarding his estate.

“The Security Service is responsible for the personal protection of the prime minister, but not for the protection of the property in question. When the prime minister visits locations that we do not guard, we naturally take this into account in our work,” a Säpo spokesperson said.

James Smith

Editor-in-Chief