The operator of a defunct "revenge porn" website that featured stolen nude photos pleaded guilty Wednesday to federal charges in Los Angeles.
Hunter Moore, of Woodland, entered the pleas to computer hacking and identity theft. He's facing two to seven years in federal prison.
The 28-year-old was once dubbed the "most hated man on the Internet" for posting explicit photos and information about the people portrayed in them on his website, IsAnyoneUp.com. Many images were posted by jilted lovers to get even with former partners, investigators said.
Moore also hired someone to hack hundreds of email accounts and steal photos, according to authorities. Twenty-six-year-old Charles Evens of Studio City faces trial next month on federal charges of hacking, ID theft and conspiracy.
Seven victims were named in the federal indictment, including a woman who was 25 years old when her computer was hacked in 2012. Charlotte Laws, the victim's mother, pushed for legislation regarding revenge porn in California.
"You think that it can't happen to you, but it can," Kayla Laws said in a 2014 interview with NBC4 from her Studio City home. “I was just so damaged by it. I just wanted to stay in my room. It just all hit me like a ton of bricks."
The California law signed in 2013 by Gov. Jerry Brown made it a misdemeanor to post identifiable nude pictures of someone else online without permission with the intent to cause emotional distress or humiliation. That law was expanded this year to make it a misdemeanor to distribute a naked photo of someone, often in the act of revenge, even if the photo was originally taken by the naked person.
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Moore was referred to in a 2012 "Rolling Stone" article as "the most hated man on the Internet." In a video published in July 2012 on YouTube, Moore is seen explaining "revenge porn" and the genesis of IsAnybodyUp.com in an expletive-filled interview.
"It all started with me hating some dumb b---- who broke my heart," Moore said in the video as he explained IsAnyOneUp.com was originally intended to be a nightlife website. "It just evolved from there."
As part of a plea agreement reached last week, all of his future online activities will be monitored once Moore is released from prison. He must register devices capable of accessing the Internet with his probation officer, agree to have those devices searched, and agree not to encrypt any files without permission.
