Face of Flanders: Tiany Kiriloff

That’s what happened last week to Tiany Kiriloff, co-founder of the Flemish marketing bureau Belmodo. Kiriloff’s brand is a big hit on Instagram, with almost 200,000 followers.

But when she tried log in last week, she was refused access. It appeared she was the victim of a hijacking – her account had been taken over by hackers and was being held for ransom.

Kiriloff, 38, was born in the Netherlands to a Chilean mother and a Dutch father with Russian roots. The family lived in Venezuela until she was 13, when they moved to Kalmthout in Antwerp province.

Kiriloff studied communications in Antwerp, modelling at the same time, and she landed a job as a host on the JIMtv fashion programme Alive.Style. She stayed with the channel, covering lifestyle subjects.

In 2008, she set up Belmodo, a social media marketing platform for fashion designers. The Instagram account of about 5,000 photos is one of the most visited in Flanders.

But it’s a simple matter for hackers to take over an account and shut the owner out altogether. “This is an attack on my livelihood,” she told business daily De Tijd. “My clients are supporting me for the time being, but if I can’t get my profile back, I’ll have to cancel some of my contracts.”

The incident is an illustration of how important social media has become to some businesses, including those like Belmodo who are entirely reliant on the channels. Kiriloff is what is known as an influencer: She offers fashion labels exposure to almost 200,000 followers, who – importantly –  don’t feel as if they’re being sold anything.

Many labels are currently paying people like Kiriloff to reach that kind of audience. “Fashion companies count on the exposure we can offer,” said Michael Schockaert, co-owner of the company. “The sooner this can be sorted out, the better.”

Photo credit: Tiany Kiriloff/Facebook