Jennifer Lawrence.
Summary: The hacker who stole nude photos of Jennifer Lawrence will plead guilty to unauthorized access of a private computer.
In September of 2014, a hacker stole nude photographs of celebrities like Jennifer Lawrence and Kate Upton, and those photos were released onto the internet. The scandal was dubbed “Celebgate,” and the violation left its victims emotionally wrecked.
During the investigation in Los Angeles, Jennifer Lawrence had been “distraught” as she recounted what the experience had done to her.
“[Lawrence] became very distraught and I had to stop the interview at one point because of her emotional reaction to the information being discussed,” an FBI agent had said in court filings. “(She) stated she was having an anxiety attack, and was visibly shaken.”
Lawrence, Upton and almost 100 other celebrities saw their intimate portraits posted on websites such as Reddit and 4Chan.
“Just because I’m a public figure, just because I’m an actress, does not mean that I asked for this. It does not mean that it comes with the territory,” Lawrence had told Vanity Fair.
Now Lawrence and others may finally get justice. Edward Majerczyk, 28, of Chicago was charged last month with unauthorized access to a private computer, The Chicago Tribune reports. The self-described computer geek is scheduled to appear in court in late September to formally plead guilty to stealing the nude pics.
Prosecutors have already agreed to seek a 9 month sentence for Majerczyk. On September 27, he will plead in front of U.S. District Court Judge Charles Kocoras.
From November 2013 to August 2014, Majercyzk allegedly conducted a phishing scheme to access victims’ Apple iCloud and Gmail accounts. He illegally obtained entry to more than 300 accounts.
Majercyzk was not charged with selling or posting the stolen pictures, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office said they are still investigating how the information was leaked.
Authorities were able to pinpoint Majerczyk after they traced the IP addresses of several Celebgate hacker computers to his apartment building in Chicago. Majerczyk was living with his mother at the time.
In May, another hacker pled guilty to a similar phishing scheme linked to Celebgate. Authorities said that Ryan Collins, 36, worked independently of Majerczyk though.
What can people do to stop theft of information from private computers? Let us know in the comments below.
Source: The Chicago Tribune
Photo courtesy of EW