9 hours ago
Irish news site accidentally sends readers to X-rated adult website
A local Irish news site gave followers a shock when a brief hack on their page led to a link being posted for an X-rated website.
On Sunday, Dublin based local newspaper Skerries News shared a post on their social media wishing athletes good luck in Sunday's Skerries Triathlon, alongside a map of the route.
The post read: 'Good luck to all participating athletes in the Skerries Triathlon today. The temporary road closures are now in place. The cycle route goes along Balbriggan Road. For full details see link'.
But the link didn't direct back to Skerries News, instead it was a link to an adult video on Pornhub. Skerries News were quick to set the record straight, telling followers on Monday that a 'rogue extension briefly hijacked' their link.
They wrote on social media: 'Well, that escalated quickly… Ok, so we were hacked — and it's gone viral. But hey ho. Just another day at your favourite local newspaper.
'To the tens of thousands of you who very enthusiastically clicked our link yesterday — surprise! You were taken somewhere a little more… adult-themed than we intended.
'No, we haven't pivoted to the adult entertainment industry (although based on the click rate, maybe we should consider it?).
'A rogue extension briefly hijacked our link, and for about eight minutes, we were unintentionally promoting a site that definitely wasn't part of the brand plan. We've been getting screenshots sent to us from all over the world — even as far as #ourbalbriggan.
'Shout out to LADbible Ireland for helping us truly cement this moment in internet history. We caught it fast, fixed it faster, but the internet never forgets — and now here we are.
'Hope everyone managed to find their way around the roadblocks for the Skerries Triathlon yesterday without our 'super helpful' link. Sorry about that.'
