Second apparent leak of hacked celebrity nude pictures: US media

LOS ANGELES - More nude celebrity photos, purportedly including reality star Kim Kardashian, circulated social media Saturday, in what appeared to be the second massive hacking-related leak in less than a month, US media reported.

The pictures, which also included nude shots of actress Vanessa Hudgens and US soccer star Hope Solo, appeared briefly on 4chan and Reddit, before being removed, celebrity gossip site TMZ reported.

BuzzFeed said that personal videos and photos belonging to actresses Aubrey Plaza, Mary-Kate Olsen, Hayden Panettiere and Leelee Sobieski were posted, in addition to previously unseen pictures of Jennifer Lawrence.

Hackers first released a trove of nude starlets' photos on September 1, after snatching them from Apple's iCloud in what the tech giant has called a "targeted attack."

The company has denied its cloud storage system was breached, suggesting that the celebrities had their accounts hacked by using easy-to-guess passwords, or by giving up their personal data to cybercriminals posing as Apple, a technique known as "phishing."

In addition to Lawrence, celebrities whose pictures were allegedly stolen and posted online in early September included model Kate Upton, singer Avril Lavigne and actress Gabrielle Union.

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Apple to add security alerts for iCloud users - CEO

Apple Inc is planning additional steps to keep hackers out of user accounts in the face of the recent celebrity photo scandal, but denied that lack of security allowed intruders to post nude photographs of celebrities on the Internet, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Apple will alert users through email and push notifications when someone tries to change an account password, restore iCloud data to a new device, or when a device logs into an account for the first time, Chief Executive Tim Cook told the Journal in an interview.

Apple is moving quickly to restore confidence in its systems' security ahead of the crucial launch of its new iPhone next week.

Some companies fear the two-factor authentication could drive users away as it gets too cumbersome. However, Matt Johansen of WhiteHat Security told Reuters that the usability battle will always be there but the users will eventually get along well.

Some security experts faulted Apple for failing to make its devices and software easier to secure through two-factor authentication, which requires a separate verification code after users log in initially.

Apple could also do more to advertise that option, they said. Most people do not bother with security measures because of the extra hassle, experts say, and the leading phone makers are partly to blame.

The iCloud service allows users to store photos and other content and access it from any Apple device. Security in the cloud has been a paramount concern in past years, but that has not stopped the rapid adoption of services that offer reams of storage and management of data and content off smartphones and computers.

Apple was not immediately available for comment.

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Jennifer Lawrence contacts authorities after nude photos hacked

Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence has contacted authorities to investigate who stole and posted nude images of her online, a spokeswoman said on Monday, part of a reported mass hacking of celebrities' intimate photos.

Online pictures of the actress, 24, who won an Academy Award for "Silver Linings Playbook" and stars in "The Hunger Games" movie franchise, began appearing on Sunday. The source of the hack was unclear.

Images purporting to be of dozens of other female actresses, models and athletes were also posted. The authenticity of many could not be confirmed.

"This is a flagrant violation of privacy. The authorities have been contacted and will prosecute anyone who posts the stolen photos of Jennifer Lawrence," spokeswoman Liz Mahoney said in an emailed statement. She did not say who was contacted.

A spokesman for the FBI said the agency "is aware of the allegations concerning computer intrusions and the unlawful release of material involving high profile individuals, and is addressing the matter."

Model Kate Upton was among celebrities whose photos were posted online. Her lawyer, Lawrence Shire, called them "an outrageous violation" of her privacy.

"We intend to pursue anyone disseminating or duplicating these illegally obtained images to the fullest extent possible," he said in a statement.

The photos were posted on the image-sharing forum 4chan. Britain's Mirror website quoted the anonymous uploader as saying on the site he or she was a collector, not the hacker.

The uploader said the photos had generated $120 in bitcoin, a digital currency, but added: "I really didn't get close to what I was hoping."

NBC News said Apple Co iCloud accounts had apparently been hacked to get the photos. Apple spokeswoman Nat Kerris said in an email: "We take user privacy very seriously and are actively investigating this report."

Actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead said on Twitter that nude photos of her were also posted online. She said the photos had long been deleted.

"I can only imagine the creepy effort that went into this. Feeling for everyone who got hacked," said Winstead, who starred in "Smashed" and "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter."

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