Sask. woman gets thousands in credit card charges after hackers lock her out of Facebook page
An Outlook woman has been locked out of her online business’ Facebook page for months and she says she’s starting to lose hope.
Rochelle Annala first realized something was wrong on a Saturday in November when she logged into Facebook to make the first post of the weekend on her page, Bibs and Boots Fabric. The page didn’t look right. She couldn’t access the admin controls.
“I couldn't get in to post. It made it look; made my business page look like I was a visitor,” said Annala.
“And then I got, like, virtually within minutes, I got two notifications on my phone that someone had charged thousands of dollars on my Visa.”
Annala says it looks like they may have gotten access to her personal account, added themselves as an admin on her Facebook page and then kicked her off.
The charges to her Visa were for Facebook ads, and she says she’s got no information from Facebook as to what ads were purchased, nor can she see who’s now the admin of the page.
Annala emailed Facebook’s parent company Meta to tell them what was going on. Getting the money refunded was easy, but getting access to the stolen page has been a frustrating journey.
“I tried every email that I could find for them … same answer every time,” she said. “It’s been a long, arduous process, and stressful, right? Because I can’t see when customers message me. I can’t see when they comment or anything.”
Her Instagram is linked to her Facebook account, so she says her posts still end up on the Facebook page, but she’s worried about what else this hacker could do now.
Having a security breach like this can be really harmful for a company, says Saskatoon-based software developer Chad Jones.
“Because people can post as you, they can pretend to be you,” he said. “It can damage your reputation.”
It’s possible the hackers are using the account to try to exploit other Facebook users, Jones said.
“So once they hack your account, the standard practice is they will probably send messages to everyone you know, trying to get them to click on links in order to get access to computers, things like that, right?”
Judging by a message Annala received on Monday, the hacker may have access to some customer emails as well.
“This lady messaged and said, ‘I think someone’s hacked your account, because I’m getting emails from people about your business.’ Oh my god, I didn’t even think of that.”
CTV News reached out to Meta for comment on Monday. A media spokesperson took her information and said they would look into it.
If Meta does restore her access to the page, Jones suggests Annala should go over the security settings very carefully, and make sure two-factor authentication is set up on all her associated accounts.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trudeau acknowledges charges in Nijjar killing, calls for commitment to democracy
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has acknowledged the charges laid Friday in relation to the murder of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Bodies recovered in Mexico likely 2 Australians, 1 American who went missing: officials
Three bodies recovered in an area of Baja California are likely to be those of the two Australians and an American who went missing last weekend during a camping and surfing trip, the state prosecutor’s office said Saturday.
Princess Anne lays wreath at B.C. veteran's cemetery; receives 21-gun salute
Princess Anne paid tribute to veterans buried at a cemetery in British Columbia today, laying a wreath to honour the more than 2,500 military personnel and family members buried there.
Mystik Dan wins the 150th Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in a three-horse photo finish
Mystik Dan won the 150th Kentucky Derby in a photo finish, edging out Forever Young and Sierra Leone for the upset victory.
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
Work stoppage possible as WestJet issues lockout notice to maintenance engineers' union
A lockout notice issued by WestJet to a union representing aircraft maintenance engineers could result in a work stoppage next week.
London Drugs begins 'gradual reopening' on 7th day after cyberattack
Almost a week after all London Drugs stores across Western Canada abruptly closed amid a cyberattack, they began a "gradual reopening" on Saturday.