THE new Bishop of Raphoe has issued a warning that an impersonator has created a bogus Facebook account in his name.
A suspicious personal social media page in the name of Bishop Coll, who was installed in January past, was spotted by the Donegal News.
This newspaper then contacted the diocesan office.
A spokesperson said “we know nothing about it” and added that the bishop is “away on a retreat until Friday”.
A statement then appeared on the Facebook account of Letterkenny’s St Euann’s Cathedral to warn users not to engage with bogus pages.
It warned: “It has come to our attention that a fake Facebook account has been created in Bishop Niall Coll’s name.
“Please do not engage with this account.”
The Facebook page shared an account and suggested that it is bogus:
Doubt has been cast about this Facebook account that is in the name of Bishop Niall Coll.
The Raphoe diocese posted on its own Facebook account and stated: “Notice, scam alert. Please be aware that a fraudulent Facebook profile is currently impersonating Bishop Niall Coll.
“Do not accept friend requests, reply to messages, or click on any links from this fake account.
“Please help us protect the community by taking these steps:
“Do not engage: block the account immediately if it contacts you.
“Report the profile: click the three dots on the fake profile.
“Select report: choose Find Support or Report. Select impersonation, click Pretending to be Someone and select Raphoe Diocese/ Bishop Niall Coll.”
The Facebook account of the Raphoe diocese carried a warning about a fake Bishop Coll Facebook page.
The diocese added on its own Facebook page: “Official diocesan communications are only shared through this page.”