Joe Hockey's account 'likes' tweet calling PM a 'cranky prick'

The account of the former Abbott government treasurer gave the cyber-nod to a tweet from economist Stephen Koukoulas during Mr Turnbull's Monday night appearance on ABC's Q&A program.

"Turnbull - wow. Showing what a cranky prick everyone who has worked with him says he is," Mr Koukoulas said in his tweet criticising the Prime Minister's performance.

But on Tuesday morning, Mr Hockey said: "Don't get too excited. It looks like I have been hacked. AFP now investigating."

The ambassador is the third Liberal figure to be caught up in a Twitter mishap in recent weeks, with the accounts of Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne and Health Minister Greg Hunt liking pornographic tweets. The ministers also blamed hackers and referred the incidents to police.

Mr Hockey has had an up and down relationship with Mr Turnbull. When the now Prime Minister challenged for the Liberal leadership in September 2015, Mr Hockey labelled his criticisms of the Abbott government "unfounded" and accused him of disloyalty.

Three months after dumping him from cabinet, Mr Turnbull appointed Mr Hockey to the plum diplomatic posting in Washington DC.

At the time of his appointment, Mr Hockey said staying in Parliament would have been "overwhelmingly about getting even with the people that brought me down," adding that he loved his country and family more than he hated his enemies.

On the Twitter's mobile application, a post can easily be 'liked' through an inadvertent tap with a finger as people scroll through their timeline or an individual account.

Earlier this year, the account of suspended Australian Border Force commissioner Roman Quaedvlieg also liked an erotic clip.

In 2016, the account of Treasurer Scott Morrison liked a post concerning China's human rights record. He subsequently blamed hackers.