Some photo agencies are claiming the image in the Princess of Wales' Mother's Day post has been altered.
Kate Middleton's absence from the public eye continues to spark speculation.
On Sunday, a portrait of the Princess of Wales, 42, with her three children -- Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5 -- was shared on Kate and Prince William's official Instagram account in honor of Mother's Day in the U.K.
"Thank you for your kind wishes and continued support over the last two months," Kate captioned the photo taken by William. "Wishing everyone a Happy Mother's Day. C."
However, several photo agencies, including The Associated Press, are now pulling the picture from their sites amid claims that the image was manipulated.
"AP initially published the photo, which was issued by Kensington Palace. But AP later retracted the image because at closer inspection, it appeared the source had manipulated the image in a way that did not meet AP's photo standards," AP explained. "The photo shows an inconsistency in the alignment of Princess Charlotte's left hand."
Kensington Palace has yet to publicly respond to the claims.
In January, Kate was admitted to the London Clinic for what the Palace referred to as a "planned abdominal surgery." 13 days later, the Palace announced that she was released from the hospital and returned home to Windsor, England, "to continue her recovery from surgery."
It was also announced that the princess would not be returning to official royal duties until after Easter, which takes place on March 31 this year.
For the most part, the Palace has chosen to keep the details of Kate's condition private, though ET learned that that surgery was not related to anything cancerous.
Just last week, Kate was seen for the first time since her hospitalization. In a photo taken last Monday, she was shown wearing sunglasses while riding in a black SUV driven by her mother, Carole Middleton. An eyewitness told ET at the time that Kate and her mother were spotted in their vehicle around 9 a.m. just outside London. "The Princess was low-key, looking out the window as her mother paid attention to the road," the eyewitness said.
Despite the sighting, however, many still had questions about Kate's whereabouts and health condition. Amid the speculation, William's spokesperson addressed conspiracy theories in a statement to People. "His focus is on his work and not on social media," the spokesperson told the outlet.
The Palace also released a statement of their own, saying, "We gave guidance two days ago that the Princess of Wales continues to be doing well. As we have been clear since our initial statement in January, we shall not be providing a running commentary or providing daily updates."
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