Hackers managed to break into the Facebook page of Nicolas Sarkozy to announce he was abandoning plans to run for re-election and would be retiring next year
Hackers managed to break into the Facebook page of Nicolas Sarkozy to announce he was abandoning plans to run for re-election and would be retiring next yearHackers have managed to break into the Facebook page of French President Nicolas Sarkozy and posted that he would be quitting next year.
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| Pranked: Nicolas Sarkozy's Facebook account was broken into and a message with several spelling errors was posted. File pic |
It meant that more than 3,50,000 'friends' of the head of the state would have read about his resignation on what is meant to be a secure site.
Many passed the message on to thousands of others when it appeared on Sunday night, meaning a buzz had soon been created on the World Wide Web.
In a misspelled and ungrammatical post illustrating the havoc that hackers can cause, Sarkozy is meant to have written, "Dear compatriots, given the exceptional circumstances our country is experiencing, I have decided in my spirit and conscience not to run for office again at the end of my mandate in 2012."
There was a reference to another Facebook page called Farewell to Nicolas Sarkozy, suggesting that people meet outside Le Fouquet's restaurant in Paris on May 6 to celebrate his resignation. Yesterday, Sarkozy had replaced the false message with a real one apologising for the security lapse and thanking friends and supporters for their loyalty.
"My Facebook account was hacked into this evening, perhaps to remind me that no system is infallible," said a message on the page after it was reclaimed by the legitimate account holder.
He acknowledged that social network sites were insecure and said that people should always be wary.
Sarkozy is one of the most unpopular presidents in French history, with an approval rating which has dropped below 30 per cent at times.
