BACOLOD CITY: The provincial government of Negros Occidental is working to regain access to its official Facebook page after it was hacked on Monday, displaying unauthorized content, including photos of half-naked women. The breach has prompted an urgent response from local authorities to restore the page, which serves as a critical platform for communication with its 183,000 followers.
According to Philippines News Agency, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz II stated that the issue has been referred to the Information and Communications Technology Division, which is actively working to retrieve control of the page. “They have experience in how to do that. I’m confident they will recover the Facebook page of the province,” Diaz said, expressing optimism about the resolution of the incident.
The hacked page, named ‘Provincial Government of Negros Occidental,’ routinely provides updates on the activities of Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson and other provincial matters. Diaz acknowledged that similar hacking
incidents have occurred with Facebook pages belonging to other local government units, though this is the first time it has happened to their page. He emphasized the need for readiness and response to minimize the risk of such occurrences in the future.
In August of the previous year, a similar incident involved the hacking of the Facebook page of former Negros Occidental 3rd District Representative Jose Francisco Benitez. Unauthorized videos were posted, but access was reinstated within two days following intervention by Meta Philippines Representative Office’s Public Policy Team in Manila. Around the same time, other local government pages, including Bacolod City’s ‘Masskara Festival’ and Cadiz City’s ‘Biliz Cadiz, Ugyon Cadiznon,’ also experienced hacking incidents, underscoring a broader regional issue.