Kim Kardashian's sex tape scandal and the legal fallout
The 2000s were a different time - people still had old-school Nokia’s, your computer's connection cut out every time someone rang the landline and no one fully grasped how fast a private moment could become very, very public.
Unfortunately, one relatively obscure socialite was about to find out. In 2007, Vivid Entertainment leaked a sex tape of Kim Kardashian and her then-boyfriend Ray J, catapulting her into the limelight.
In this article, the Crime+Investigation team explores the legal fallout - and how one tape changed the celebrity landscape forever.
Relationship with Ray J
After a series of devastating losses, including a divorce and the death of her father (OJ Simpson attorney, Robert Kardashian) Kim Kardashian needed a break. One day, she bumped into a friend - Ray J, the younger brother of singer Brandy.
'He was funny and silly and took my mind off everything,' Kim wrote in Glamour, 'When my father passed away... [he] became my refuge: We travelled to Hawaii, Mexico and all over the world... It was light-hearted and fun and exactly what I needed at that moment.'
Keen to document their travels and capture happy memories, Kim bought a brand-new video recorder. One night, the couple decided to make a sex tape. 'We were totally kidding around,' Kim recalled. 'Never in a million years did I think the tape would be seen by anyone but us.'
The leak
Despite being inseparable at the start of their relationship, the couple broke up in December 2006 after three years of dating. 'I moved in with my mom and he moved in with his sister, and all of the stuff from our house went into storage,' Kim recalled. 'The tape was in a camera bag; I forgot about it.'
However, a few months later, she would be forced to remember. During a trip with Paris Hilton, Kim received a call from a friend saying someone had bought her sex tape, and it was all over Page Six. It felt like her life was over.
'When my mom hired lawyers for me, I had to rehash every detail of what I'd done on the tape so they would know what they were dealing with. Imagine describing any part of your sex life to your mom. Now imagine doing that in front of a team of attorneys. I could have died from shame.'
Subsequent lawsuit
What followed was one of the most high-profile celebrity cases of the late 2000s. In February 2007, Kim filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court against Vivid Entertainment, an adult entertainment company, for 'unspecified damages, attorney fees and all profits from the sale of the tape.'
She claimed the company had unfairly profited from her name while invading her privacy. In a statement, she said: 'This tape, which was made three years ago and was meant to be something private between myself and my then-boyfriend, is extremely hurtful not only to me but to my family as well...it is being sold completely without my permission or consent.'
Vivid co-chairman Steven Hirsch argued that the company had purchased the tape legally from a third party for $1 million. This person has never been disclosed, although speculation ranges from Ray J to Kim Kardashian's mom-ager, Kris Jenner.
Ultimately, the parties reached a settlement outside of court. Kim reportedly received between $3 million and $5 million, though the exact amount was never officially confirmed. Vivid retained rights to distribute the tape for a limited time - generating millions of dollars in revenue.
Impact on celebrity privacy law
While this specific incident didn't change laws, it did raise important questions about online privacy, consent and distribution rights. The legislation around revenge porn, in particular, was still being formalised — Kim's case highlighted the need for greater protections, and fast.
Kim's huge payout also worried the media, which had been operating without consequence for decades. Organisations suddenly realised that celebrities could and would sue over non-consensual distribution, often settling for huge sums.
As courts became more sensitive to the emotional damage of leaks, so too did the public. There was outrage when a hacker targeted Jennifer Lawrence, Kaley Cuoco and others in 2014, releasing intimate nude photos.
News Group Newspapers also learnt the hard way about violating celebrity privacy. The company has paid approximately £1.2 billion in damages so far in relation to the phone hacking scandal. In January, Harry, the Duke of Sussex, became the latest victim to reach a settlement.
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