Berkshire small business loses thousands after Facebook page hacked

020724 FACEBOOK THEFT
The Maidenhead-based clothing manufacturer is warning other small businesses to be extra vigilant. Credit: ITV Meridian

A clothing company in Maidenhead say they've lost thousands of pounds of business after their Facebook account was taken over by hackers.

Staff at SP Workwear say they were locked out of their page overnight and are unable to access their valuable social media profile and customer base.

They're now warning other small businesses to be extra vigilant.

Meta, who own Facebook, say they take the safety and security of their users seriously.

Staff at SP Workwear say they were locked out of their own Facebook account by hackers. Credit: ITV Meridian

Two months ago, SP Workwear's Facebook account was taken over by hackers and three fraudulent payments of £700 appeared on their credit card account."Overnight an email came through to say so and so is now an admin on your account," said SP Workwear director, Steve Palmer.

"I didn't think too much of it as we work with an ad agency so we were discussing some changes."

"The next day we were trying to post something and it wasn't working, it kept coming up with an error."

"We went in and realised we couldn't access the back end of the website and everyone who was an admin has been kicked off."

The Maidenhead-based clothing manufacturer is warning other small businesses to take extra precautions. Credit: ITV Meridian

The company which supplies branded workwear was reassured by Meta that the issue would be quickly resolved but several weeks on Mr Palmer says they still can't access their Facebook account."Social media is used for that more casual way of connecting with your customers. having that taken away you just don't have it," said digital marketing apprentice Charlotte Millar.The initial losses were recouped but the company estimates the blocked social media account has cost them around £20,000 in lost revenue.A spokesman for Meta said: "Fraudulent activity is not allowed on our platforms and we are continually investing in new technologies to tackle this industry-wide issue. We take the safety and security of our community seriously."Mr Palmer doesn't know how the breach happened but is warning other small businesses to restrict access to social media accounts and make ensure security measures are in place.

Steve Palmer estimates the blocked social media account has cost them around £20,000 in lost revenue. Credit: ITV Meridian

Pat Coomber-Wood from North Oxfordshire Citizens Advice says there are ways to improve your security.

"You can set up 2 factor authentication where every time you log into your account it also requires you to go onto your mobile phone and it will send you a number you need to click on."

"So that way if there's somebody who's hacked into your account, if they don't have your mobile they won't be able to get in even if they've got your username and password."SP Workwear is now trying to set up a new customer base but hoping their old Facebook account will soon be reinstated.

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