The Fappening was one of the most controversial celebrity events in recent history. On August 31st, 2014, a set of thousands of private, intimate photos belonging to some of the biggest stars including Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton and more were leaked online from an iCloud breach. This event dubbed “The Fappening” stirred up such a huge public outcry that it quickly attracted coverage from all major news outlets around the world. Despite receiving massive hate from millions of fans and celebrities alike, there were also a large number of people who welcomed the leaked photos as a chance to get an inside look at their favorite celebs. Since the leak occurred back in 2014, these stolen photographs still remain popular among curious internet users. With new discussions popping up regularly on forums worldwide, “TheFappening” remains one of the most talked-about topicsof lately. Similar to other nude photo leaks before it like “Celebgate” or "Snapchat Nudes", The Fappening also served as a reminder for us to take precautions with our personal data online. As we live increasingly digitized lives, personal information like photos shared over social media are becoming even more vulnerable than ever for hackers to access. To prevent future events such as this, many high profile celebrities have learned their lesson and began investing in improved cloud security measures and regular private password resets after the leak occurred five years ago. Technology companies have made significant progress in providing stronger user authentication tools which should help prevent further unauthorized access in the near future. Five years after the event known as The Fappening took place, there is still a wide demand for stolen nude celebrity photos across many different platforms throughout the internet such as Reddit and 4chan where they are traded openly by thousands of eager users from all corners of society every single day. In addition to calling attention to improving digital security measures between big tech firms and its customers around the world, The Fappening has raised important questions over our culture's obsession with famous people that we may never understand for many years ahead.
