Apple claims it’s not responsible for dozens of nude celebrity photos that were leaked online.
“None of the cases we have investigated has resulted from any breach in any of Apple’s systems, including iCloud or Find my iPhone,” the firm said in a statement on Tuesday, noting it has spent more than 40 hours investigating.
“When we learned of the theft, we were outraged, and immediately mobilized Apple’s engineers to discover the source,” it noted.
Instead, the firm claimed, the hacker or hackers — who released a massive stash of nude shots Sunday to the Web site 4chan, including those of stars such as Jennifer Lawrence and Kate Upton — broke into non-Apple accounts of celebrities by gaining access to user names, passwords and answers to personal security questions.
Meanwhile, a hacker claiming to be behind the 4chan photo dump said he or she was working with a team of creeps to pull off the stunning invasion of privacy, according to a message posted anonymous Monday on the AnonIB Web forum.
“Guys, just to let you know I didn’t do this by myself. There are several other people who were in on it and I needed to count on to make this happened,” the user wrote.
“This is the result of several months of long and hard work by all involved. We appreciate your donations and applaud your excitement,” the hacker added, according to the UK’s Mirror newspaper.
The hacker is now on the run as the FBI hunts for clues, according to the post.
“I will soon be moving to another location from which I will continue to post,” said the hacker, who refers to himself on the site as “Original Guy.”
Other celebrities who appear to have been targeted include Kirsten Dunst, Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Victoria Justice.
Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney, whose nude images were also leaked, claimed on Tuesday that she was under 18 when one of the photos was taken, TMZ reported.
She is taking legal action against several porn sites, including Porn.com, for reposting the images, according to the gossip site.
A rep for Porn.com claims the Web site immediately removed the photos after receiving a letter from Maroney’s attorney.
The hacker or hackers could face up to 10 years in prison — or more if Maroney’s claim about being under 18 is true.