The ‘Fappening’: What The Latest Security Breach Means To You

The “Fappening” has struck, and it will have far-reaching implications.

The “Fappening” is the name given to the recent breach of internet privacy, possibly involving Apple’s iCloud. Private photos from stars such as Kaley Cuoco, Kate Upton, Jennifer Lawrence, among others, have been taken from their personal accounts once they were hacked. As reported earlier by The Inquisitr, photos and videos were leaked from Google Drive, Dropbox, SnapChat, and other storage services during the Fappening. At this point, only two of the stars affected, Sports Illustrated swimsuit model Kate Upton and movie actress Jennifer Lawrence, did indeed admit (both through their lawyers) that the leaked photos were indeed theirs.

Beta News is reporting that not only nude photos of celebrities were hacked and taken, but also the more mundane, everyday “safe-for-work” photos, vacation photos, and the like. This creates an uncomfortable situation for users of these, or any, photo-storing services. The truth is even the most secure services can be breached if someone wanted to badly enough. Yes, the “Fappening” can happen again. Regardless of which one you choose, you must be careful with how you use the storage services.

Security researcher Grahan Cluley offered the affected celebrities, and indeed all of us, some advise:

“There have been claims that iCloud may be involved, but it’s tricky to confirm even if all of the celebrities affected use Apple devices. […] Even if they were all using iCloud, it’s possible that there isn’t a security hole in iCloud itself but rather that celebrities had not properly secured their accounts with — for instance — hard-to-guess passwords.”

The story was updated to reflect that iCloud may not have been hacked, or that it is the only cloud service involved in the photo theft, further frustrating those trying to stop the “Fappening.”

Heavy.com is reporting that perhaps more than 400 celebrity accounts were hacked into by the yet-to-be-identified 4chan hacker during the “Fappening.” They also report that both Lawrence and Upton have admitted that the pictures are real, and both have begun possible legal action.

Twitter began closing accounts that share any of the “Fappening’s” leaked photos on their service. Celebrity reporter Perez Hilton had posted some of the pictures of Lawrence and Victoria Justice, but then took them down and apologized for his actions via Twitter.

“I acted in haste just to get the post up and didn’t really think things through. I’m sorry.” He added later, also via Twitter, “No, I haven’t been forced to do so or been contacted by their reps, but I am removing those uncensored photos of JLaw and Victoria Justice.

Justice claims the photos are fakes.

It all comes down to the pictures you take. If you want intimate photos of your significant other and want to prevent the “Fappening Part 2,” make sure they are stored in a place where only you and your significant other can get to them.