Bella Thorne took action against an alleged blackmailer by publicly releasing her own nude photos in 2019. The former Disney star felt deeply affected by the victim-blaming responses that followed, which she says left her emotionally shattered.

Thorne became embroiled in a major scandal when she accused a hacker of blackmailing her with private photos. To gain control of the situation, she decided to share the images herself.

“I just did an honest Twitter post,” Thorne recalled during an appearance on “Call Her Daddy.” “I set it out as … you’re not going to keep taking this from me, so here it is.”

Though her intention was to preempt the alleged extortionist, the move led to a wave of backlash. The accusations of attention-seeking were particularly damaging to Thorne.

“The worst part was people saying, ‘Well, you did this. You are faking it. You just want us to see your private parts,’” Thorne told host Alexandra Cooper. “That really, really broke me.”

Thorne rose to fame on the Disney Channel series “Shake It Up,” starring from 2010 to 2013. The 28-year-old actress described herself as completely devastated during the scandal, sharing her emotional state in an Instagram story.

The situation took an unexpected turn when Thorne said she received a call from the FBI. Investigators came to her home to gather evidence regarding the blackmail.

“One day, I get a call from the FBI. They wanted to see all the data I had,” she recalled. “So now I have a house full of FBI agents, which is the craziest thing.”

Thorne collaborated with the FBI for over a year, providing crucial information. Her cooperation helped them identify a suspect through the writing style in the screenshots she shared.

“If I hadn’t posted those screenshots, they wouldn’t have caught him as soon,” she said. “It helped their case because of his exact writing style.”

The FBI’s identification of the suspect was due in part to Thorne’s proactive sharing of information, resulting in a critical breakthrough in their investigation.