A SENIOR Newport councillor said her personal e-mail account was hacked and her e-mail contacts were told she was thousands of miles away and needed money to get home.

Debbie Wilcox, Labour cabinet member for leisure and culture, has reassured people that she is definitely not in the Philippines.

The email, saying she was 6,000 miles away and needed £2,500 to return to Britain, was sent last Tuesday, when Cllr Wilcox was in Pontypridd and Newport working.

Cllr Wilcox, who is a teacher, became aware of the hack to her BT internet email account after worried contacts, including an ex-pupil who works on the Spain/Gibraltar border, got back in touch with her.

“The first thing I did was change my password and went on to BT’s site and used their safety and security information. I would advise everybody else to do the same.”

“If any constituents are worried, I am not in Manila and please don’t send me £2,500.”

Online guides advise that if you find our account has been hacked you should change your password straight away.

If that’s not possible you should try to contact your provider to reset your password. Passwords can be made stronger using a combination of letters and numbers, as well as upper and lower cases.

Many hackers also collect passwords using so-called malware installed on the victim’s computer. All computer users should ensure that anti-virus and anti-malware programs are up to date, as well as security updates.