The Fappening: How hundreds of nude celebrity photos broke the Internet

It was a flood of Diluvian proportions and decidedly devilish intentions.

 

Hundreds of nude and revealing photos, allegedly of top female celebrities—including Hunger Games star Jennifer Lawrence, bikini hottie Kate Upton, and pop sensation Rihanna—made the rounds on social media on September 1, after what appeared to be a wide-scale hacking leak, according to The Verge.

This event has since been dubbed “The Fappening” on social media.
 

"This is a flagrant violation of privacy. The authorities have been contacted and will prosecute anyone who posts the stolen photos of Jennifer Lawrence," stated the actress’ representative.  

 

The spokesperson did not specify what legal consequences would befall those who share the uncensored images online.

 

Crackdown on the Internet

 

In response to the leak, Twitter has already suspended several dozen accounts for posting some of the pictures. Reposts on file sharing sites and forums are also being systematically taken down.

 

While it is uncertain how the photos were acquired, anonymous users on 4chan stated they were procured by hacking the stars’ private iCloud accounts. These accounts enable users of iPhone, iPad, and Mac to synchronize data, including images and settings, between devices.

 

The leak was teased earlier the previous week by an unidentified user who made the suggestion that he had been able to gain access into the celebrities’ personal stash of photos. The user admitted that he was responsible for the hack, stating that he would make more videos and images available if people were to give him Bitcoin and monetary donations via PayPal.

 

Clarifications, denials

 

It’s also possible the hacker had been building up their collection of nude photos for a while before making the post. According to “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead, her photos were deleted years ago.

 

To those of you looking at photos I took with my husband years ago in the privacy of our home, hope you feel great about yourselves.

— Mary E. Winstead (@M_E_Winstead) August 31, 2014
 
 

 

Knowing those photos were deleted long ago, I can only imagine the creepy effort that went into this. Feeling for everyone who got hacked.

— Mary E. Winstead (@M_E_Winstead) August 31, 2014
 

Meanwhile, singer and former Nickelodeon star Victoria Justice claims her nude images are forgeries.

 

These so called nudes of me are FAKE people. Let me nip this in the bud right now. *pun intended*

— Victoria Justice (@VictoriaJustice) August 31, 2014
 
 

  

Other celebrities victimized by this massive leak include Avril Lavigne, Amber Heard, Gabrielle Union, Hayden Pannettiere, Hope Solo, and Selena Gomez. — TJD, GMA News