PM’s Press Secretary Dimitri Soudas Pranked by 'Infoman' TV Show

by Jacob Zinn | March 19, 2010 at 03:44 pm

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Dimitri Soudas, the press secretary for Prime Minister Stephen Harper, has been pranked by Quebec television show Infoman, exposing a his breach of Internet security protocol.

On Friday, Soudas removed his personal Facebook profile after learning he had friended someone from the Radio-Canada show who used the alias Christopher David Meer.

The real-life Christopher David Meer is a fugitive, wanted on charges of extortion, arson and conspiracy to commit arson. A Google search of his name reveals the RCMP has a nationwide warrant for his arrest.

Here’s hoping that he has learned his lesson and that he will be more careful choosing his friends,” said a post in French on the show’s website.

Prank Raises Government Privacy Concerns

The point being made is that the real Meer could have sent a friend request to Soudas under his real name and gained access to photos of the press secretary’s family, friends and home.

Producers of Infoman interviewed former senior intelligence officer Michal Juneau-Katsuya about Internet privacy. Katsuya said the incident was a real breach of security, especially considering it happened to Soudas, who is extremely close to the prime minister.

The fake Facebook account, created February 1, uses Meer’s real mugshot as the profile photo and lists his relationship status as “It’s complicated.”

Dimitri Soudas Responds to Security Threat

After taking down his Facebook profile, Soudas tried to downplay the incident by telling the press that removing his account wasn’t a big deal.

It’s not like I invited him into my living room,” said Soudas.

Soudas isn’t the only high-profile Canadian politician duped by the show. Former Conservative cabinet members Diane Ablonczy, Maxime Bernier, Jean-Pierre Blackburn, Stephen Fletcher, Pierre Poilievre and Lisa Raitt were all on the friends list.