Troll of the Month: people and media involved in the spread of non-consensual intimate imagery
November 4, 2026
The Balkan Troll of the Month is an individual, a group of individuals or a media outlet that spreads hate based on gender, ethnicity, religion, or other diversity categories. The Balkan Troll is selected based on hate speech incidents identified across the Western Balkan region.
At the end of September and the beginning of October 2026, several intimate videos involving composer Adrian Hila and other individuals, including women known in Albania’s arts and entertainment sectors, circulated widely across WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram, TikTok, Facebook and online media. It was made clear that the videos and recordings had been made earlier and uploaded to paid pornography websites before becoming publicly accessible.
On 29 September, the videos and related materials spread widely, in some instances with unblurred images and uncensored audio. The precise route by which the material became broadly accessible, and the identity of the person or persons who first extracted or uploaded it, remain unclear.
Hila initially said he was shocked by the incident and suspected that his system had been hacked. He stated that he had installed cameras for security purposes following an earlier burglary at a neighbor’s property—thesame studio where the encounters with various women were recorded.
Tirana Police announced that the Cybercrime Investigation Sector had begun investigating the publication and distribution of the material. Investigators were reportedly seeking to identify IP addresses, pages and profiles involved in publication or redistribution and to have the material removed from online platforms. Media reports indicated that the broader investigation was examining several suspected offences, including unlawful interception of computer data, interference with computer data, unlawful interference in private life and misuse of devices.
Hila was questioned for several hours while the relevant premises were inspected, and he remains under criminal investigation but at liberty. Separately, the police seised a hard drive for forensic examination. Media reports said the device was damaged while Hila reportedly stated that he had damaged it himself because he feared further access to or interference with the system. This development reportedly raised an additional suspicion concerning possible actions intended to obstruct the discovery of the truth.
Additionally, the case gained greater public visibility after showbiz journalist and content creator Elton Tozaj discussed the videos publicly and identified some of the people allegedly involved. Tozaj denied producing, recording or originally distributing the videos, saying they had been sent to him through WhatsApp and were already circulating when he reported on them. Other material collected for this report records instances in which he reportedly claimed to have distributed the videos or referred to sending them to an interviewer before an interview, while subsequently denying that he had published them. Elton Tozaj submitted a written statement claiming that the videos had been sent to his phone.
Tozaj describes himself as a journalist covering “showbiz” and has said that he intends to expose what he characterises as a “prostitution network” in the entertainment industry. In TikTok videos and interviews, he has announced intended revelations about public figures, published private messages, named people allegedly appearing in intimate material and made claims about sexual relationships and professional advancement.
Online portals and television programmes continued to publish updates, names, reactions and speculation, turning an ongoing investigation into a highly visible media and entertainment story.
The non-consensual filming of individuals is both illegal and immoral. Furthermore, the distribution of such content publicly is extremely problematic; no one should be put in the dangerous position of being filmed without their consent or knowledge. It is often the case that intimate material involving well-known public figures attracts public curiosity and is repeatedly amplified through national media outlets, online portals and social media. This creates a cycle in which sensationalist reporting increases the visibility of leaked material, encourages further searches and sharing, and shifts attention away from consent and privacy violations towards scandal and personal exposure.In such cases, the media should respond responsibly by emphasising how dangerous, harmful and illegal the conduct is. The identities of those involved should be protected, and the case should not be sensationalised for viewership and readership.