Celebrity hacker who accessed nude photos of Jennifer Lawrence jailed for nine months

A hacker who stole private information and nude photographs belonging to 30 celebrities including actress Jennifer Lawrence has been jailed for nine months.

Edward Majerczyk, 29, from Chicago, was also ordered to pay $5,700 (£4,500) in restitution for counselling services for one undisclosed celebrity victim whose photos were disseminated online.

Majerczyk obtained access to more than 300 email and online accounts using a phishing scheme, according to his plea agreement.

Victims of the phishing scheme were duped into entering their usernames and passwords after receiving an email that appeared to come from their internet service provider.

Majerczyk pleaded guilty in federal court in Los Angeles last year to one count of unauthorised access to a protected computer to obtain information.

He was not charged or accused of selling or posting the material online.

The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison but after a plea agreement, that Majerczyk signed for his case to be transferred to Chicago, both sides agreed to a nine-month term.

Majerczyk's attorney Thomas Needham said in a court filing that his client was "suffering from depression and looked to pornography websites and internet chat rooms in an attempt to fill some of the voids and disappointment he was feeling in his life."

Needham said in a sentencing memo that the fallout from the hacking scandal "deeply affected" Majerczyk, who has seen a therapist for anxiety and panic attacks.

Federal agents said Lawrence broke down and became distraught during a 2014 meeting about nude photos of her that appeared online.

In an interview with Vanity Fair, the actress called the leak a "sex crime".