Yet another nude photo leak scandal has clogged our news feed as celebrities like Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton, and Arianna Grande have been exploited against their will (notwithstanding the authenticity of the photos). Apparently, some sleaze ball hacked into iCloud profiles and completely violated multiple levels of privacy.
 
Like all stories like this, floods of opinionated responses followed after the story making it a public discussion. Some are more appalled at the violation of these celebrities private pictures, while others find the fault in the individuals choice to take the pictures in the first place.
 
Now, while I totally believe that what you do with your phone, your body, and your time is completely your business, I have to state the obvious: taking nude photos, regardless of the camera (phone, digital, disposable, photographers) is a big big big BIG risk.
 
Seriously though, nothing recorded can every truly be private property unless it’s simply a fantasy stored away in your head. People can be devious, careless, and sometimes incredibly impulsive. Sorry, but that seems to be human nature.
 
This tendency isn’t only a celebrity thing either, obviously. Young adults in college, high school, and even middle school take nude photos. Whether or not you want to admit it, we’ve all taken photos (nude or nah) that we would NEVER want to end up in the public’s eye. Sadly, and especially with the surge of smart phones and social media, you never truly know where that “secret photo” can end up. And based upon recent events, that’s proven to be truer than ever.
 
I was actually watching the Today Show earlier this week with Kathy Lee and Hoda (seriously the favorite part of my morning). Kathy made an excellent point about the issue at hand: the only TRUE way that a photo can’t be “leaked” online is if it’s an old school Polaroid. That, or the long process of painting your beloved muse.
 
Now, while what Kathy said is totally true, I also have to point this out: these can still fall into the wrong hands. Hard copies can be misplaced, photo messages can be shared with friends, and like you’ve witnessed in movies and in Hollywood gossip, those glam shots can go viral almost instantly. Oh, and scanners and fax machines exist, so literally nothing is safe anymore.
 
And, in my own personal opinion, celebrities taking these pictures need to be more mindful of the risks that they’re taking when snapshotting their goodies. We all are people and have the same freedom to do as we please, yeah yeah yeah, but people watching E! News on their couch (like me) are less likely to make headlines about our risky business than someone starring in the movies we watch.
 
Sorry, had to hit you with reality there. “Who’s to Blame” seems to always be a catch-phrase attached to the tabloid articles, and quite honestly, I think anyone linked to the photo and the sharing of it should hold a part of the blame. You’re a celebrity, yeah you were hacked, but you know you’re famous and those scumbags will work much harder to exploit you before some regular Joe in the real world.
 
So, and I can’t stress this enough, be f*cking careful. I’m not telling you to stop taking risqué shots, nor am I stating that those of you taking these pictures are making bad decisions. I’m SAYING that you MUST accept the risks that come with capturing these intimate moments. Do what you wanna do, make your partner happy, make yourself happy, but don’t deny the potential for that choice to come back and bite you in the ass *pun intended.

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