Guilty Plea Entered In Celebrity iCloud Hacking Case

It was called “The Fappening.” It was a day that would live in infamy, because everyone everywhere got to see nude photos of a host of celebrities, but instead of celebrating, the world collectively said, “Ew, gross.”

Because even when it comes to the famous and photogenic, limits still exist, and a cry went out for the privacy violator to be punished. And yesterday (March 16), that punishment came closer to becoming a reality, as a Pennsylvania hacker has been formally charged with hacking both the iCloud and Google storage accounts of about 100 people and then using that access to steal and distribute personal information.

On the hot seat is 36-year-old Ryan Collins, who, the U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California alleges, was behind a phishing scheme between Nov. 2012 and Sept. 2014. That scheme was intended to siphon usernames and passwords to at least 50 iCloud accounts and 72 Gmail accounts.

“By illegally accessing intimate details of his victims’ personal lives, Mr. Collins violated their privacy and left many to contend with lasting emotional distress, embarrassment and feelings of insecurity,” said David Bowdich, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles office. “We continue to see both celebrities and victims from all walks of life suffer the consequences of this crime and strongly encourage users of Internet-connected devices to strengthen passwords and to be skeptical when replying to emails asking for personal information.”

Court filings further note that Collins sent out emails that resembled official correspondence from Google and Apple — emails that were used to convince the unknowing to cough up details that could be used to access personal photos or, in some cases, entire phone backups. The charging documents also corroborate Apple’s claim that the iCloud itself had not been hacked, and instead, its individual users had been.

Collins has pleaded guilty to one count of unauthorized access to a protected computer to obtain information — a charge that, at most, will put him in prison for five years. However, it is likely the prosecutorial recommendation will be for 18 months.

Collins represents the first set of charges in the case, but he many not be the last. The investigation may next turn to those who were directly responsible for leaking the photos.