HACKED. Negros Occidental 3rd District Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez has designated a temporary Facebook page (left) for information released by his office after his official page (right) was hacked on Aug. 21, 2023. “We are actively addressing this issue and working to regain control of the page,” an advisory from his office said Tuesday (Aug. 22, 2023). (Screenshots of Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez's Facebook pages)
BACOLOD CITY – Negros Occidental 3rd District Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez is using a temporary Facebook page named “Metro 3rd News” as his team works to regain control of his hacked social media page.
On Tuesday, hackers continue to have unauthorized access to the “Cong. Kiko Benitez” page, uploading videos of “hot movies” for two days now after changing his profile picture with that of an unidentified female.
“We are still awaiting response/action of Facebook but we have already gone through the request for recovery and assistance from them,” an update from the lawmaker’s office said.
In an advisory on Monday, Benitez’s team announced that his official Facebook page, which has about 19,000 followers, “has been compromised by unauthorized access.”
“We are actively addressing this issue and working to regain control of the page. We urge the public to report any suspicious content and avoid engaging with unauthorized posts. We appreciate your cooperation as we work to resolve this matter,” it added.
The hacking of Benitez’s Facebook page came after two prominent pages in Negros Occidental have also been hijacked earlier this month, those of Bacolod City’s “Masskara Festival” and Cadiz City local government unit’s “Biliz Cadiz, Ugyon Cadiznon”. (PNA)
