A SHOWBIZ executive has been awarded £22,000 damages against a former friend who created an unflattering profile of him on Facebook at his Hampstead home. In the first ever case of its kind Mathew Firsht, who is the managing director of Applause Store Pro

A SHOWBIZ executive has been awarded £22,000 damages against a former friend who created an unflattering profile of him on Facebook at his Hampstead home.

In the first ever case of its kind Mathew Firsht, who is the managing director of Applause Store Productions Ltd, successfully sued his old schoolfriend and freelance cameraman Grant Raphael for libel and misuse of private information.

The ruling sets a precedent and could open the floodgates for hundreds of cases over content being uploaded onto social networking websites.

Deputy Judge Richard Parkes QC ruled that Mr Raphael's defence to the action - that the entry was created on his computer by party gate-crashers at his flat - was built on lies. He awarded Mr Firsht £15,000 for libel and £2,000 for breach of privacy, while his company was awarded £5,000 for libel.

The phoney Facebook profile, which was active for 16 days, stated that Mr Firsht was looking for 'whatever he could get' in terms of relationships, and he was signed up to groups including Gay in the Wood...Borehamwood, and Gay Jews in London.

For the full story, next week's Ham&High.