LORD Mayor Cllr Chris O’Leary has been forced to tighten his security settings on social media following scathing attacks from online trolls.
The Sinn Féin politician said he can no longer allow the public to freely post messages on his Facebook and Twitter pages which is now limited to acquaintances, friends and family.
In recent years, he confessed to suffering from frequent bullying online from social media users.
“One of the messages posted made reference to my mother and suggested that I should have never been born,” he said. “That was particularly upsetting as it had been posted just before she passed away. Some people believe that because you are a public figure they have the right to take a shot at you, but what’s worse is when they feel they can take a shot at your family too.”
The first citizen said he has been hit by defamatory comments, and also what he described as “planned online attacks” from groups of people
He has also been tagged in an explicit sex video.
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