Jennifer Lawrence responds to nude photo hacking

NEW YORK — The people who chose to look at nude celebrity photos that hackers posted committed “a sexual offense,” actress Jennifer Lawrence says in an exclusive interview with Vanity Fair in its November issue.

The Oscar winner, who was among dozens of celebrities whose photos were posted beginning on Aug. 31, attacked both the hackers and those who sought out the photos in the interview, which marked the first time she had publicly commented.

“It is not a scandal. It is a sex crime,” she said about the hackers. “It is a sexual violation. It’s disgusting. The law needs to be changed, and we need to change.”

Of those who looked at the photos, she said, “Anybody who looked at those pictures, you’re perpetuating a sexual offense. You should cower with shame.”

The 24-year-old said the photos were taken for her boyfriend of four years, actor Nicholas Hoult, adding that the hardest phone call she had to make was to her father, telling him that the photos were stolen and posted on the Web.

She said she considered writing a statement, but each time would “cry or get angry.”

Apple acknowledged computer hackers targeted and then broke into the accounts of Lawrence and several other stars whose revealing photos were posted on sites like Imgur.com, Reddit and Twitter, among others, during the Labor Day weekend; the FBI previously confirmed it was investigating.

Earlier this month, Apple announced plans to tighten its online security and also urged users to use stronger passwords and enable a two-step authentication feature to prevent data thefts.

The November issue of Vanity Fair goes on sale Oct. 14.