Scarlett Johansson Nude Photo Phone Hacker Arrested, FBI Claims
Updated at the bottom with the suspect's name, more details. First posted at 11:35 a.m.
BuzzFeed Scarlett.
The FBI has been on the case of the phone hacker(s) who mined nude photos form the handsets of the likes of Scarlett Johansson and possibly also violated the mobile devices of Miley Cyrus, Jessica Alba, Demi Lovato, Ali Larter, Christina Aguilera and Vanessa Hudgens.
Today the feds announced an arrest in the case, reportedly that of a Florida man.
Last month the hacked nude photos of Johansson went viral and ...
... the FBI revealed it was on the case.
We wondered aloud if the investigation would lead to the Anonymous spin-off hackers known as Hollywood Leaks.
The feds called their investigation Operation Hackerazzi.
More details were expected from a late-morning news conference in L.A.
Update: The FBI tells us the suspect is Christopher Chaney, 35, of Jacksonville, Florida.
The FBI:
A federal grand jury in Los Angeles returned a sealed indictment yesterday charging Chaney with violations under Title 18 of the U.S. Criminal Code, including: accessing protected computers without authorization; damaging protected computers without authorization; wiretapping; and aggravated identity theft.According to the indictment, which was unsealed this morning, Chaney used several
aliases while illegally obtaining personal information of numerous celebrities through a series of computer intrusions.
Feds say their 11-month investigation revealed that there were at least 50 victims, including such big names as Johansson, Mila Kunis, Christina Aguilera and more.
The suspect's hacking spree is alleged to have taken place between November 13 and February 10.
Authorities say he was (allegedly) pretty slick:
In most cases, Chaney accessed the administrative settings on the victims' accounts so that all of their e-mails would automatically be forwarded to a separate e-mail account Chaney controlled. This form of wiretapping allowed Chaney to continually receive victims' e-mails even after a password had been reset
They accused Chaney of "distributing" some of his look (e.g. sexy photos) to "celebrity cites."
If convicted he could see as many as 121 years behind bars.
Was the suspect was affiliated with Hollywood Leaks or Anonymous? Feds aren't saying.
-With reporting from City News Service. Got news? Email us. Follow us on Twitter, too: @dennisjromero.
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