Ryan Collins, 36, of Pennsylvania, has been charged with computer hacking in relation to the “Celebgate” incident that occurred back in 2014, in which prominent celebrities’ nude photos were stolen and leaked on the Internet.
Over two years, Collins ran so-called phishing scams to acquire user names and passwords for 50 iCloud accounts and 72 Gmail accounts.
He sent emails that looked like they originated from Google and Apple to the victims in question, who were mostly female celebrities including Ariana Grande, Kate Upton and Jennifer Lawrence, in order to obtain their login details.
Collins may be facing a maximum prison sentence of five years, however prosecutors recommended that he serve 18 months after a plea deal, according to a statement from the US Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.
Collins is only being charged with breaking into celebrities’ accounts and not with the leaks that occurred to sites including Reddit and 4chan. Gawker also reported that the FBI has searched the homes of two Chicago men in 2014 in connection with the leaks.
SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter.
Larry Banks is a keen follower of technology and finance. He has worked for a variety of online publications, writing about a diverse range of topics including mobile networks, patents, and Internet video delivery technologies.