Corey Lowenstein/Raleigh News & Observer/MCT/Sipa USAGeez, tell us how you really feel, Clay Aiken.
The 35-year-old singer, most famous American Idol runner-up, father of one and current Democratic congressional candidate, appears to have little sympathy for celebrities who were targeted in a nude photo leak in late August. The list of stars who had naked and other racy pics stolen from their personal accounts and circulated online included Jennifer Lawrence and Kate Upton.
"Anybody who takes inappropriate pictures of themselves deserves exactly what they get," Aiken told The Washington Post in a recent interview.
"Of course whoever [stole and released the photos] should be hogtied," he added. "And it's unfortunate that we don't have Internet security right now or the laws in place to protect people from pirating that stuff."
Clay Aiken Talks Nude Photo Leak Victims
Lawrence and Upton's personal photos were posted online in late August in what marked one of the biggest celebrity privacy breaches in history. The leak drew the attention of the FBI, who have not revealed any suspects.
Apple, which operates the iCloud file-sharing service operator and manufactures the iPhone, launched its own investigation and said there had been a "targeted attack" on "certain celebrities."
CEO Tim Cook suggested the affected celebrities had fallen victim to phishing scams, which led to their iCloud login information being leaked, or had chosen security questions aimed at protecting their passwords that hackers were able to guess.
On Saturday, a fresh batch of nude photos, resembling stars such as Kim Kardashian and Vanessa Hudgens, was circulated online. Thr authenticity of the images has not been confirmed.
Aiken, a father of a 6-year-old boy, rose to fame as the runner-up of season 2 of American Idol in 2003. He was also the runner-up of season 5 of Donald Trump's reality show The Celebrity Apprentice in 2011. He is also a musical actor. He appeared in the Monty Python show Spamalot on Broadway and last year, he appeared in a production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
He later began a career in politics and won the Democratic nomination for a seat in North Carolina's Second Congressional District in May. His main opponent, Keith Crisco, died from a fall at age 71 just one day before the official results were leased.
Ruben Studdard, who beat the performer to win American Idol, supported his campaign. He and season 3 winner Fantasia Barrino are set to perform at a reception honoring Aiken in Charlotte on Sept. 23.
Aiken is currently running as a Democrat to try to unseat Rep. Renee Elmers, a Republican, in a November election.