A years-long online forum that amassed millions of users by hosting and monetising alleged non-consensual intimate images has been taken offline after an investigation by Bellingcat and New Zealand news outlet The Press uncovered a network of digital records that appear to connect the platform to a Christchurch-based entrepreneur.
The investigation centres on LeakedBB, a forum established in 2019 that grew into one of the internet’s largest repositories of alleged leaked explicit content. According to Bellingcat, the site attracted an estimated two million visits each month between March and May this year, displayed more than 2.2 million registered users and contained over 2.6 million posts before becoming inaccessible in early June.
Bellingcat’s investigation followed a digital trail involving payment infrastructure, company registrations, website domains, archived web pages and technical internet records that it says appears to point to Jitendra Maharaj, a former pilot based in Christchurch and co-founder of cryptocurrency start-up Pay It Now (PIN). The publication notes there is no suggestion that PIN had any knowledge of or involvement in LeakedBB.
The investigation gained momentum after Bellingcat and The Press contacted Maharaj on June 4 with detailed questions about the evidence they had gathered. Two days later, LeakedBB went offline. At the time of publication, the website remained inaccessible.
When approached outside his Christchurch home on June 25, Maharaj denied knowing who operated LeakedBB and said he was unsure whether the website had gone offline. He told The Press he believed the evidence presented against him appeared “really weird” and suggested there was “some kind of targeted attack” based on what he described as manufactured evidence. He declined to respond on the record to most of the specific material linking him to the website, referring those questions to his lawyer. Despite receiving an extension until July 6, neither Maharaj nor his legal representative provided a detailed response addressing the evidence outlined by Bellingcat before publication.
According to the investigation, LeakedBB evolved rapidly from a forum that initially hosted discussions about software and digital content into a platform almost entirely devoted to explicit material claimed to have been leaked, hacked or stolen. Much of the content was placed behind subscription paywalls costing up to US$99.99, while users were rewarded with credits and cryptocurrency for uploading material and attracting engagement from other members.
Bellingcat found that the platform actively encouraged users to upload and exchange alleged non-consensual intimate imagery. Forum posts promoted collections of images linked to women’s names, social media accounts and locations, while other sections invited members to request explicit material involving specific individuals or identify women pictured in intimate photographs. Some posts claimed images had been obtained through hacking or blackmail.
The investigation highlights the real-world consequences for victims whose personal details accompanied the material posted online. Reba Rocket, chief operating officer of Takedown Piracy, told Bellingcat that LeakedBB had harmed numerous clients, including people with no connection to the adult entertainment industry. She said victims had experienced job losses, damaged relationships and other personal consequences after intimate content was circulated without consent.
Allison Mahoney, a lawyer representing survivors of online abuse, told Bellingcat that non-consensual intimate image cases remained common. She said victims whose identities were exposed alongside explicit images sometimes faced harassment at their homes or workplaces, turning online abuse into direct threats to their physical safety.
Bellingcat also identified discussions on the forum referencing underage material. Although LeakedBB published statements claiming it prohibited child sexual abuse material and closed one marketplace after allegations that such content was being traded, the investigation found other sections where descriptions referred to “young teens”. The report notes it could not verify whether those descriptions reflected the actual content, but cites a recent Reddit post from an individual who claimed intimate images taken when they were a minor had been hacked from Snapchat and uploaded to LeakedBB.
The investigation’s technical findings form the core of its attribution. A payment screenshot posted by the site’s administrator account, “Lucifer NightStar”, displayed the name “Logica LTD”. Bellingcat found that Logica Limited was registered in New Zealand by Maharaj in 2021 and remained active according to company records. Archived versions of Logica’s website showed it selling digital avatar packs that matched products promoted in LeakedBB tutorials as an alternative way of purchasing premium memberships while disguising the true nature of the transaction.
Researchers also identified connections through internet domain records. According to Bellingcat, DNS certificates linked LeakedBB domains with mybbplugins.com, a website publicly registered to Maharaj for several years. Additional archived records connected the same infrastructure to domains incorporating Maharaj’s name and usernames.
Bellingcat further examined historical activity associated with an account identified as “Jitendra M.” on the MyBB developer forum. Archived records showed the account discussing the creation of adult websites, online payment systems and video streaming as early as 2008. The account also linked to a personal website and contained profile details matching Maharaj’s publicly available biographical information, including his date of birth, previous employment as a pilot in Fiji and website ownership records.
Archived social media posts examined by Bellingcat also showed an account using the same username as Maharaj’s Facebook and Instagram profiles promoting LeakedBB shortly after the forum launched in 2019. In addition, the investigation found that a GitHub account later renamed “JitMaharaj” had previously copied software repositories relating to cryptocurrency subscription platforms similar to OnlyFans and another tool designed to report illicit content hosted on LeakedBB. Several repositories disappeared after Bellingcat sought comment.
The investigation also examined LeakedBB’s financial infrastructure. Cryptocurrency payment processor NOWPayments confirmed to Bellingcat that the website violated its terms of service and said it immediately deactivated and blacklisted LeakedBB’s account after receiving questions from reporters on June 4.
Bellingcat reports that while LeakedBB accepted requests to remove copyrighted material under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, its procedures required users to submit extensive personal information beyond what many major online platforms request. Victims and online commentators argued those requirements could discourage people from seeking removal of their images, particularly because much of the content remained hosted on third-party websites even after takedown requests.
The investigation concludes against a backdrop of evolving legal responses to image-based abuse. In the United States, the recently enacted Take It Down Act requires platforms to remove reported non-consensual intimate imagery. In New Zealand, where Maharaj resides, distributing intimate images without consent is prohibited under the Harmful Digital Communications Act. Even so, legal experts interviewed by Bellingcat said enforcement remains difficult when websites, hosting services and operators span multiple jurisdictions.
Mahoney told Bellingcat that advancing technology continues to outpace legal systems, while Rocket said the absence of enforceable international rules means unlawfully shared images can remain online indefinitely. Both argued that identifying those responsible for operating such platforms could help deter future abuse by reducing the anonymity that has long enabled online exploitation.
