The former Glee star, who is expecting her first child with husband Ryan Dorsey, recently posed naked for Yahoo! Style, using just a long fur stole draped around her shoulders to cover her breasts.

The sultry image was posted online on Tuesday (11Aug15), just hours after Kardashian flaunted her fuller figure in a similarly revealing 'selfie' snap as part of a bid to address comments made by body critics convinced she is faking her second pregnancy.

However, instead of being showered with compliments, Rivera, whose looks have frequently been compared to those of the reality TV star, found herself under fire from detractors on social media, who were convinced she was simply trying to steal the spotlight from Kanye West's wife.

The 28 year old has now hit back and in a series of Twitter.com posts, she writes, "I chose to share pregnancy photos because I think this is a very beautiful and special time in my life. Media outlets know that when you give your photos and an interview to run a story you never get a choice as to when it runs.

"So trying to make something out of nothing based on stupid assumptions is awful. Such a shame. Especially when it comes to a woman and her beautiful pregnancy journey."