Teens’ photos end up on adult porn site

Authorities in a town west of Boston are warning Facebook users to take precautions after some photographs of high school students were poached and uploaded to an adult pornography website.

Photographs of nearly 20 students at Bay Path Regional Vocational Technical High School in Charlton were uploaded to the site, which also features images of child pornography, authorities said.

Despite the website’s pornographic content, the photos of the students were innocent and did not feature nudity, said Superintendent David Papagni.

Charlton Police Chief James Pervier said police were notified of the hijacked photos at about the start of the month and are investigating how they were stolen and who posted them. Police have since enlisted the help of the Worcester County district attorney’s office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation has also been given the information.

Papagni said the victimized students and their parents were immediately notified.

He said the incident serves as a reminder that online privacy settings are important.

“I don’t think it was [the students’] fault at all, especially when someone wants to hack in to your system and use photos in a devious way,” he said.