Explicit nude photos purporting to show a number celebrities - including Ariana Grande, Kate Upton, Jennifer Lawrence and Victoria Justice - have sparked debate over the right to privacy as it applies to celebrities.
The unverified photos first surfaced on social media sharing site Reddit, quickly sending Lawrence trending on Twitter.
Victoria Justice has denied the authenticity of the photos in a message posted on Twitter.
Social media users were divided on whether celebrities should have a right to privacy.
"It's fine to violate a persons privacy if they're a celebrity," one Reddit user posted.
Others said the publishing of the photos is distressing. "It's making me really upset", the user wrote.
A hacker, who has yet to be identified, claims he accessed the photos via the iCloud accounts of a number of celebrities, before posting them on image sharing website 4chan.
The hacker claims to have hacked dozens of accounts including those of Kirsten Dunst and Kim Kardashian.
US authorities have previously arrested other hackers who claim they accessed and circulated nude photos of celebrities.
Thirty-five-year-old Christopher Chaney was arrested by Florida Police over pictures of Scarlett Johansson and Mila Kunis that he obtained by hacking emails.
FBI agents arrested 19-year-old James Abrahams over alleged threats he issued to Miss Teen USA contestant Cassidy Wolf. He threatened to release nude photos of the contestant that were obtained by hacking her webcam.
Authorities tracked down Abrahams, finding out that he was a serial offender.
Other celebrities who are alleged to be affected by the leak have yet to comment on the photos.
