Hacker removed from Minnesota tourism agency Facebook page

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota’s tourism agency has removed a hacker who was peppering the agency’s Facebook page with bizarre postings.

Explore Minnesota said the agency and Facebook were able to identify the hacker and remove the hacker’s access to the agency’s page about 4:30 p.m. Monday. The agency’s Facebook account had been hacked since Monday morning.

Explore Minnesota says it has been restored as the administrator, and is working with Minnesota IT services and their cybersecurity team “to ensure the highest level of security measures are in place.”

Agency spokeswoman Alyssa Hayes tells The Associated Press that it was a “totally random hacker” and not someone who used to be employed by the agency. The agency’s other social media channels were not affected.

Explore Minnesota’s Facebook page has more than 226,000 fans.