Apple’s chief executive yesterday took the unusual step of publicly commenting on the theft of hundreds of intimate photographs from celebrities’ iPhones.

An expert in crisis communication applauded Cook for speaking up. “This was clearly a good idea,” said Gene Grabowski, senior strategist at Levick, a Washington, D.C. firm that advises companies on public relations and messaging strategies. “What we’re seeing here is the realization on the part of Cook that in order to maintain their position, they’re going to have to be more transparent.”

In a Thursday interview with the Wall Street Journal (subscription required), Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, said that his company was not to blame for the photo scandal. He denied that Apple’s iCloud was hacked systematically and insisted that accounts were compromised when attackers stole passwords by correctly answering reset questions, or after victims fell for a phishing scam and gave up their credentials.

To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

…