On Sept. 1, 2014, a vicious wave of attacks on privacy raced
through the Internet at a speed known only to those fluent in
hacker jargon and computer programming. Hundreds of nude and
suggestive photos of high-profile female celebrities, which
had been allegedly acquired through a major hack, were leaked
on the websites 4chan and Reddit. Over 100 celebrities such as
Kate Upton, Jennifer Lawrence and Arianna Grande became instant
victims, as hackers stole personal photos from their cell phones.
The public’s reaction to the scandal seemed to move in stages.
First, they believed that this breach of privacy seemed so
impossible that upon hearing the rumors, they raced to their
smartphones and computers to see if it was true. Most of the
public clicked and tapped until they found what they thought
could not really exist, and in this way the public also
violated the privacy of over 100 high-profile female
celebrities.
When people realized the pictures were real, more posts began
to flood news outlets and public Internet forums. The most
popular comments ran along the lines of “how did they do it,”
“I can’t believe she took nude photos” or for the less
computer savvy, “where can I find the photos so I can see for
myself?”
As the “Ohmigod, no way” stage of the public’s reaction began
to die, a more rational response began to grow and spread
among the masses. The details of the incident had become
clearer; only women had been targeted and had their privacy
grossly violated. The time had come to stop viewing the
hacking as simply an unheard of, entertaining scandal and
to start getting angry that the rights of so many women had
been infringed upon with such widespread sexual harassment.
Actress Lena Dunham, whose phone was not hacked, pleaded with
her fans to react to the photos with integrity through a
series of tweets. She wrote, “The way in which you share your
body must be a CHOICE. Support these women and do not look at
the pictures,” as well as “Remember, when you look at these
pictures you are violating these women again and again. It’s
not okay.”
Fortunately, it was not long before a lot of the public started
to follow Lena’s lead and react similarly. Now it was Reddit’s
turn to blush and peek at the loss of its reputation and
credibility forever.
In an ill-thought-out attempt to win back the public’s favor,
these websites decided to donate the profits they had made on
the pornographic photos to charities. First, because Jennifer
Lawrence had once donated to the Prostate Cancer Foundation
(PCF), Reddit decided to do the same. Much to its embarrassment,
PCF responded to the donation by issuing the following public
statement: “We would never condone raising funds for cancer
research in this manner. Out of respect for everyone involved,
and keeping with our own standards, we are returning all
donations that resulted from such posts.”
Reddit was not deterred by this. They immediately began to
transfer the rejected donation money to the charity water.org.
Not only were these dirty funds rejected again, but Reddit’s
donation page was shut down and will eternally read, “You have
changed 0 lives to access with safe water.”
This perv-shaming is something that we should see more. A lot
of people’s initial reactions were right to judge the hackers
for infringing on something so private, but it cannot hurt to
remember that the celebrities who took the suggestive and nude
photos of themselves are not in the wrong — not in the least
bit. It is not illegal or uncommon for people to take sexy and
suggestive photos of themselves. As Lena Dunham said, “the way
in which you share your body must be a CHOICE.”
The celebrities targeted in this hack did not have the intention
of sharing their bodies with the entire Internet community. The
photos were their personal belongings, which were stolen from
them and unethically and illegally shared with the rest of the
world. Nothing makes this ok, and it is my hope that the hackers
will be forced to own up to their crimes.
thanks for reading,
stay classy! xx
Previously published in The Fordham Ram.