RTE's Bryan Dobson has become the latest Irish celebrity to fall victim to fake Facebook post
Bryan Dobson has become the latest Irish celebrity to fall victim to a fake Facebook post.
The Times, Ireland edition have reported this morning that the broadcaster appeared in a post boosted on Facebook which suggested he was going to retire.
The headline read:
After 32 years, enough is enough
The post was then linked to a story which did not give any further information about his "resignation" but instead repeated old quotes Dobson had made about being paid more than his former on-screen co-anchor Sharon Ni Bheolain.
A spokesperson for RTÉ told the publication that they had contacted Facebook on behalf of the 59-year-old, requested for the post to be taken down and it was subsequently removed.
The news comes after a number of Irish broadcasters fell victim to similar situations.
Pat Kenny spoke to listeners of his Newstalk radio show about fake online advertisements, which claim to be him, promoting erectile dysfunction medication.
Whilst 2FM DJ Louise McSharry took Twitter to warn followers about a fake Facebook ad using her photo to promote weight loss.
This Facebook page (which has only three likes) is promoting a post which uses our wedding photo with an absolute bullshit story and links to a non-existent story on a bot site. WTAF. pic.twitter.com/dymzPwmlI7
— Louise McSharry (@louisemcsharry) February 12, 2019
A Facebook spokeswoman has told The Times, Ireland edition that teams are working hard to keep this kind of activity off the platform.
"We are working hard to enhance our efforts to detect and keep this kind of activity off our platform, including increasing our safety, security and review team to 30,000 people this year," she said.
