Hacker demands nude photos from New Caney woman after taking over dead mother's Facebook account

NEW CANEY, Texas (KTRK) -- A New Caney woman turned to ABC13 after someone hacked into her late mother's Facebook account and not only took over it but also demanded nude photos in order to get it back.

Ann Caldeiro lost her mother, Donna Caldeiro, 12 years ago. Ever since, her Facebook account has helped her feel connected somehow.

"It got me through some awful times. There were times when I tagged her saying how much I missed her, how much I loved her, how much I wished she could see this," Caldeiro, 27, explained. "To me, it felt like when I did this, she was there. She was watching. She was listening, and she was part of me still."

In early November, Caldeiro said that changed when she received a message from her mother's account.

"I got the ping on my phone, and it was like, 'I am risen,' and I was like, 'What is this?'" she said.

Caldeiro took screenshots of the disturbing messages. By then, her mother's name and profile photos had been replaced with the name "Joanna Elaine," an unknown woman's picture and a photo of a creepy blow-up character. She knew the account had been hacked, and a demand followed.

"The person said that if I wanted my mother's account back, then I would have to send them nude photos," Caldeiro said.

But Caldeiro did not comply. She is well aware of so-called sextortion scams when someone extorts money by threatening to send nude photos to friends and family.

However, she does want her mother's account back. It also held old family photos that Caldeiro had not saved for herself.

"In a perfect world, they (Facebook) would restore her page as a memorial page where you could see old posts and you can tag it," she said.

Facebook's parent company, META, did not respond to an ABC13 request for comment. Caldeiro, who has messaged Facebook numerous times, remains hopeful someone will listen.

"You never realize those small connections until they're gone," she said.

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