It’s unarguably unethical to share nude images of a person without their consent.
But does the same standard apply to celebrities?
Nude images of Justin Bieber vacationing in Bora Bora recently appeared on the internet, and promptly spread like wildfire across social media.
Censored versions of the photos were also shared by high profile publications, such as the New York Daily News.
Bieber told Access Hollywood that he felt “super violated” by the incident.
His legal team sent a cease-and-desist letter to the New York Daily News, which included a threat to sue if the pictures aren’t taken down.
“In my opinion, given the fact that he’s a public figure, given the fact that he was in plain view or view that was accessible to the public, this just goes with the territory,” legal expert, Peter T. Haven, told Billboard.
“When people are in plain view or public view, they’re exposing themselves to the world, and anyone can take a picture of you when you’re standing out in public view.”
A spokesperson from FameFlynet UK, the photo agency responsible for the images, told The Independent that “there’s no invasion of privacy” in this case.