A Facebook profile purporting to be president George Vella is fake, the president’s office warned on Saturday. 

The recently-created profile features photos and videos of the president and seeks to attract Facebook users by offering €1,000 prizes in exchange for online games. 

A spokesman from the Office of the President said that the profile was fake. 

“No money is being collected via the President of Malta’s profile or official page on Facebook,” they added. 

The president's official Facebook page features the identifier handle @PresidentofMalta and sports a blue badge, meaning it is verified by Facebook.

Fake profiles have plagued social media sites in recent years and in March Facebook announced that it would be implementing new tools to detect fake profiles, following criticism that fake profiles had been used in attempts to sway national elections in the US and elsewhere. 

Despite the crackdown pledge, however, the social media giant continues to be plagued by fake profiles and misinformation. 

In Malta, high-profile figures ranging from ministers to TV presenters and businessmen have had to issue warnings about ‘fake news’ adverts appearing on Facebook to advertise cryptocurrency scams. 

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