Hacker takes over Thai PM’s Twitter account

BANGKOK (BNO NEWS) — The Twitter account of Thailand’s new prime minister, Yingluck Shinawatra, was hacked on early Sunday morning and used to post a series of messages critical of her policies.

The unidentified hacker started posting to Yingluck’s Twitter account just before 11 a.m. local time on Sunday. “This is a business. We do it for our allies, not for the Thai people. We work for those who support us, not those who differ from us,” the first message read.

A second message said: “Where are the opportunities for the poor? We tricked the poor. We gave them hope to vote so our own groups will benefit.” A total of eight messages were sent to Yingluck’s 28,000 followers by 1 p.m. local time.

“Thailand needs change. It’s time for everyone in this country to wake up. Stupidity must end,” the seventh tweet read. A final tweet added: “If she can’t even protect her own Twitter account, how can she protect this country? Think about it.”

A government spokesperson confirmed that Yingluck’s Twitter account had been hacked, but it was not immediately known who was behind it. Some media reports claimed the country’s ICT Ministry knows the identity of the hacker.

Yingluck, a top-party list Pheu Thai Member of Parliament, was elected prime minister on August 5 by a majority vote in the House of Representatives. The youngest sister of ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra became Thailand’s 28th Prime Minister and the first female to occupy the position.

The vote came a month after the Pheu Thai party won a convincing majority in the July 3 election and formed a six-party coalition, controlling 300 seats in the 500-seat House.

Yingluck faces an uphill task to steer the country out of years of deep-rooted divide and revitalize its economy amid the financial situation in the United States and Europe. She has also pledged to restore national reconciliation and unity.