Ariana Grande is taking aim at a group of anonymous hackers she claims infiltrated the devices of people in her inner circle, stealing unreleased music, private photos and behind-the-scenes footage that was later sold online.
In a lawsuit filed on Monday in California state court, the singer points to a yearslong hacking campaign targeting people in her orbit who had access to unreleased materials.
The complaint doesn’t identify the alleged hackers. Instead, Grande will likely seek court approval to issue subpoenas to internet service providers and online platforms to uncover the individuals behind the attacks through their digital footprints.
According to the lawsuit, the hackers gained access to the online accounts of photographers, producers and other collaborators who worked closely with Grande. Once inside, they allegedly downloaded unreleased songs, recording-session footage, music video materials, behind-the-scenes photographs and other private content before selling them.
The complaint details several alleged breaches spanning multiple years. In 2019, login credentials for the Dropbox account of a photographer who had worked with Grande were stolen. The following year, the phone of one of the singer’s producers was hacked, leading to the leak of unreleased masters, demo recordings and footage from recording sessions.
In 2023 alone, 45 unreleased songs hit the internet ahead of their scheduled releases, according to the complaint. The most recent incident allegedly occurred in 2024, when a phishing campaign targeted a digital technician employed by another photographer who had worked with Grande. The hackers created a Gmail account and internet domain impersonating the photographer and tricked the technician into sending Grande’s materials to them, the singer claims.
Hit tracks from Grande that have leaked include “Fantasize,” “That Bitch is Mine,” and “White Tee.”
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