Kut Chok SAO Facebook Hacked, Offensive Comments Posted
The Kut Chok SAO in Chai Nat province reported that its official Facebook page was hacked and used to post offensive comments on a news outlet's post. The SAO president apologized, formed an investigation committee, and found no staff involvement after checking all employee accounts and office computers. The organization has filed a police report and will submit evidence to the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau in Nonthaburi.
The Kut Chok SAO has addressed the uproar over offensive comments posted from its official Facebook page. On November 9, reporters learned that the SAO's page in Nong Mamong district, Chai Nat, had left crude remarks on a news post by PPTV journalist Thanyarat Thamoy, raising suspicions that an admin had accidentally switched accounts. Following the incident, the SAO went to Nong Mamong Police Station to log a daily record as evidence. At 9:00 a.m., reporters visited the SAO and found relevant departments had already set up a fact-finding committee and were examining the Facebook accounts of all employees and executives to gather evidence for a complaint to the Technology Crime Suppression Division (TCSD). The check revealed that no staff account had accessed the Kut Chok SAO Facebook page. Additionally, President Benjaphol Chankakul and the SAO clerk inspected all office computers and discovered five other SAO pages had been hacked and used to post similar offensive comments. Staff member Lakshmi, who manages the page, said she normally posts public announcements. She learned of the hack around midnight on November 8 when her sister called to ask if someone had posted on the SAO page amid a Facebook furor. Lakshmi was asleep and unaware until she checked and found the vulgar comments. She reported it to the clerk, who also manages the page, but they could not act because the SAO's Facebook can only be accessed from office computers. By morning, staff worked to fix the backend system and contacted the PPTV journalist, but more offensive comments appeared even as they tried to resolve it. All employees confirmed they had not posted anything and could not control the comments. The SAO has since changed its Facebook login credentials. President Benjaphol Chankakul apologized for the incident affecting the journalist, insisted on the staff's innocence, and said a committee was formed to investigate whether any employee was involved. The preliminary probe found no SAO staff connected to the incident. Clerk Karakot Thepchinda said upon seeing the social media reports, they immediately ordered officials to check all office computers from the date of the incident, verify whether the page admin had posted, and instructed the clerk's office to file a police report. They are now investigating all 30-plus executives and staff, checking their phones for misuse of the office page, and compiling evidence to submit to the Cyber Police in Nonthaburi. The complaint will allege that an unknown person accessed the Kut Chok SAO page.
