Scarlett Johansson’s stolen nude photos could cost hacker $66,179.46 and five years in prison

The computer hacker who broke into the email accounts of celebrities including Scarlett Johansson, and leaked nude photographs of the stars online faces tough penalties according to US prosecutors.

Christopher Chaney, from Jacksonville, Florida, pleaded guilty to breaking into the Apple, Gmail and Yahoo email accounts of various female stars, including Mila Kunis and Scarlett Johansson. By automatically forwarding any email the hacked celebrities received to an account under his own control, Chaney was able to gain access to the actress’s private correspondence and personal photographs.

Nude and risque photos of various celebrities subsequently leaked onto the internet, and were posted on gossip websites. (You do have to ask yourself what these celebs were thinking taking such photos – but…

Read more in my article on the Naked Security website.

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Graham Cluley •   @gcluley

Graham Cluley is a veteran of the anti-virus industry having worked for a number of security companies since the early 1990s when he wrote the first ever version of Dr Solomon's Anti-Virus Toolkit for Windows. Now an independent security analyst, he regularly makes media appearances and is an international public speaker on the topic of computer security, hackers, and online privacy. Follow him on Twitter at @gcluley, on Mastodon at @[email protected], or drop him an email.