Thanet Labour councillor Iris Johnston is in the middle of an Internet nightmare with emails purporting to be from her being sent around the world.

All the contacts she keeps in her email address book have been contacted, supposedly by Iris inviting them to join her on a social networking website called Friends Reunion.

Iris said: “I don’t know how this happened but I can only apologise. It seems that an email spam or a virus got into my computer’s address book, grabbed all my addresses, and then sent them to everyone I have ever made contact with.

"If people respond, I believe the bug then gets into their address book and sends their information all over the place.

“My advice is simply to delete without opening any email about Friends Reunion that claims to be from me. I have received contact from people I have never heard of inviting me to become their 'friend’ - I have even been asked by myself to be my own 'friend,’ it is that bizarre.”

Cllr Johnston, who prefers to keep her computer work to her council-related business only, added: “I don’t have time to frequent social networking sites - I do my social networking with my constituents out and about in Margate.”