How ISIS destroyed Gold Coast florist’s life

Terrorists ruined my life: Florist reveals how her dream career fell apart after an ISIS flag mysteriously appeared on her Facebook and Instagram accounts – and how blogger Constance Hall came to her rescue

  • Gold Coast florist Chelsea Shiels has made a living out of selling flower crowns
  • But hackers broke into her Facebook account and stole $420 from her PayPal
  • The thieves changed her profile picture to the ISIS flag after getting access 
  • Facebook and Instagram both took her account down as the two were linked 

A florist’s social media has told how hackers deleted her Instagram account destroying the livelihood she spent six years building from scratch.

Gold Coast florist Chelsea Shiels turned her hobby into a living when she started combining shells, flowers and gemstones to make elegant goddess-style crowns.

But earlier this month her dream career turned into a nightmare when she discovered her business social media account had been hacked.

Instagram designer Chelsea Shiels’ (pictured) social media account has suddenly vanished and destroyed the livelihood she spent six years building from scratch

They stole $420 from her PayPal account by accessing her Facebook payment details, but it was the damage to her business’ social media presence that was most stinging.

The hackers took control of her account and changed her profile picture to terrorist organisation ISIS’ black-and-white flag, causing Facebook to delete her account.

‘I got a message from my cousin which said, ‘I think you’ve been hacked’. She sent me a photo of something that had just come up as my profile photo,’ she told 9News.

She reported the hack to the Australian Federal Police – who told her the thieves may have used the ISIS flag to get the account deleted as quickly as possible.

Her Instagram account, which was linked to her Facebook, was also deleted.

It was only after days of messaging the social media giants, as well an online petition and support from well-known blogger Constance Hall, that her accounts were restored.

The floral designer turned her hobby into a living when she started combining shells, flowers and gemstones to make an elegant goddess-style crown

The floral designer turned her hobby into a living when she started combining shells, flowers and gemstones to make an elegant goddess-style crown

‘I checked my Instagram accounts and they were both gone. It happened within seconds. It was really upsetting,’ she said.

‘It just showed how quickly you can lose everything. It’s like being fired from a job … it was pretty full on.’

Ms Shiels sells her head garlands as well as decorated sunglasses for between $168 and $550 on online marketplace Etsy. 

The hackers took control of her account and changed her profile picture to terrorist organisation ISIS' black-and-white flag (pictured), causing Facebook to delete her account

The hackers took control of her account and changed her profile picture to terrorist organisation ISIS’ black-and-white flag (pictured), causing Facebook to delete her account

The designer, who has 177,000 followers on Instagram, was refunded the $420 and Instagram also admitted they had made an error.   

A Facebook spokesman said they restored access to Ms Sheils’ account as soon as they could – while verifying it was really her.

‘We’re committed to safeguarding the integrity of our services, and work hard to protect our community from hackers, fake accounts and other inauthentic behaviour,’ the spokesperson said.

'I got a message from my cousin which said, 'I think you've been hacked'. She sent me a photo of something that had just come up as my profile photo,' she said

‘I got a message from my cousin which said, ‘I think you’ve been hacked’. She sent me a photo of something that had just come up as my profile photo,’ she said

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Instagram and Facebook for further comment. 

In 2016 Ms Shiels told Daily Mail Australia she started selling her crowns after overcoming her shyness to turn her talent into a living.

‘I was so nervous what people would think, though. Like, why would you wear shells on your head, right?’ she said.  

The designer, who has 177,000 followers on Instagram, was refunded the $420 and Instagram also admitted they had made an error

In 2016, Ms Shiels told Daily Mail Australia she started selling her crowns after overcoming her shyness to turn her talent into a living

Ms Shiels sells her head garlands as well as decorated sunglasses for between $168 and $550 on online marketplace Etsy

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk