On behalf of Signa

Wikipedia: How René Benko’s page was doctored

Signa founder René Benko(Bild: Krone KREATIV/dpa-Zentralbild/Jens Büttner, Christof Birbaumer)

For many years, a computer geek not only embellished the encyclopaedia entries about the financial juggler - he also intervened in the public image of Signa Holding with cover names such as "Yung" or "Rabengruft". 

Yacht, jet, super villas. Pilots, chauffeurs, bodyguards. There is hardly a luxury that René Benko, Austria's most famous bankrupt, has not afforded himself in the last few years of his financially ailing Signa. Mostly at the company's expense.

Research by the "Krone" newspaper has now revealed that Signa even paid a computer geek from Innsbruck for many years to influence Wikipedia, the world's best-known online encyclopaedia. On behalf of the Benko managers, the pages of company founder René Benko and Signa Holding in particular have been tweaked since at least 2012.