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Celebrity Phone Hacking: ScarJo Threatens Suit

By Cynthia Hsu, Esq. on September 15, 2011 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Last March, celebrity phone hackings began to surface. One of the newest victims is movie star Scarlett Johansson, whose photographs were leaked to the Internet.

The pictures were hacked and stolen from one of ScarJo’s personal devices, and hit the web on Wednesday, MTV reports. Unfortunately for the star, Johansson’s photos show her in a very private light - and she doesn’t want others to see them.

One of the photos depicts Johansson topless. Another photo shows her standing with her backside exposed. These photos seem juicy enough for any celeb gossip rag - but post them at your own peril. ScarJo’s lawyers have threatened a lawsuit against anyone who posts the photos.

Mary Singer, Johansson's attorney, has sent off letters to publications calling the leaked photos "stolen copyright protected private photographs." And, that the photos are highly personal and private, meaning that websites would be posting them at their own risk.

Johansson is not the first celebrity to be targeted. Other celebrities who have been hacked include Christina Aguilera, Miley Cyrus, Jessica Alba, Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato, reports MTV.

It's unclear if the hacking incidents are actually connected, the Los Angeles Times reports. Though now, the FBI is now investigating the incidents.

In many states, hacking into computers is a crime. The punishment and severity for computer hacking crimes depends on what the hacker has done. And, it's not too strange that the FBI has become involved in the recent celebrity phone hackings. The FBI is one of the primary investigatory agencies that looks into computer crimes.

Though, maybe the FBI won't need to flex its investigatory powers too much. One group, called Hollywood Leaks, has already taken credit for some of the celebrity phone hackings. Though so far, the group has not specifically claimed that they were behind the racy Scarlett Johansson photographs that were leaked.

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