A member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta is warning fellow politicians to secure their social media accounts after his government Facebook page was allegedly taken over and had child pornography posted to it.
Roger Reid, the UCP MLA for Livingstone – Macleod, said he got an alert from Facebook Monday morning of an unusual login from Vancouver.
He said he quickly responded to Facebook to confirm it was not him who logged in from B.C.
“About 15 minutes later, I began to get messages from friends and colleagues that my page had been hacked,” Reid said in a statement Tuesday.
“I immediately attempted to login to my account, but realized I was locked out. I was then informed of the nature of the hack and reached out to the caucus communications department for help with regaining control of and shutting down the page.”
Reid said he worked with the UCP caucus communications team to immediately report the issue and reached out to Facebook directly to have his account taken down.
“I am deeply disturbed by the types of images that were posted to my Facebook page, and I am so sorry for friends and family that were exposed to these deeply offensive images.
“I cannot express my anger and disappointment that despite multiple reports and extensive efforts on our part — it took Facebook over five hours to shut down the page and remove the offensive images.”
Global News has reached out to Meta/ Facebook Canada about the claim. This story will be updated if a response is received.
Reid said the Edmonton Police Service was contacted and its cybercrimes division is investigating.
Edmonton police confirmed an investigation was initiated on Monday, after receiving a complaint that Reid’s Facebook account had been hacked and child pornography had been posted.
The EPS said the cybercrimes unit was involved but could not provide further details, saying it could jeopardize the investigation.
Global News did not see the alleged pornographic Facebook posts. The exact nature of the images is not known.
Reid said he was deeply saddened that good people were exposed to such offensive images.
“Facebook has been a resource connect with friends and family on a personal level and a communications tool in my role as MLA, but I am so disturbed by the events of this week that I have decided to delete my Facebook account and reduce my digital footprint overall,” he said.
“Please ensure that you take appropriate measures to secure your accounts.”
As of publishing, Reid’s profile was still active.
- Toronto’s offices are emptying out. The city wants to know what to do with them
- Capital gains changes could have ‘irreversible’ effects, business groups warn
- Could notwithstanding clause be used on abortion? Poilievre’s office says ‘never’
- U.K. takes aim at allies like Canada, wants higher NATO targets
Comments