In 2017, the wrestling world didn't just stop; it fractured.
I remember the morning the news broke. It wasn't just a headline—it was an avalanche. People were scrambling for the paige wwe sex tape video, and while the internet did its usual, ugly thing of turning a person’s trauma into a clickable thumbnail, the woman behind the screen name, Saraya-Jade Bevis, was literally fighting for her life.
She wasn't just a wrestler. She was the youngest WWE Divas Champion ever. She was the girl who moved from Norwich to the bright lights of Florida to prove that a pale "anti-diva" could rule the ring. Then, in a single weekend, hackers tore that apart.
The Reality Behind the Leak
Honestly, calling it a "scandal" feels wrong. It was a crime.
Hackers didn't just find a file; they invaded a life. They targeted Saraya’s private cloud storage and pulled out content that was years old. We aren't just talking about one video. The leak included a massive cache of private photos and several videos involving other performers like Brad Maddox and Xavier Woods.
Imagine being 24 years old. You’re already recovering from a brutal neck surgery. You’re suspended due to "wellness policy" issues that you've publicly disputed. Then, the most intimate moments of your past are broadcast to millions.
It was a mess.
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Why It Hit Different
Most celebrity leaks are forgotten in a week. This one stuck because of the "belt." One of the leaked images involved the NXT Women’s Championship—the very symbol of her professional achievement. For the WWE, a company that had spent years trying to move away from the "bra and panties" era into a legitimate "Women's Evolution," this was a PR nightmare.
The internal tension was thick. People genuinely thought she’d be fired.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Fallout
You’ve probably heard the rumors that WWE was furious. While they certainly weren't thrilled, the actual response was surprisingly human.
The company didn't fire her. They didn't even publicly discipline her for the leak itself. Why? Because legally and ethically, she was the victim of a crime. In a 2022 essay for The Players' Tribune, Saraya admitted she felt like a "liability" but praised the company for sticking by her. They knew her value wasn't just in her wrestling; it was in her resilience.
The Dark Side of the "Viral" Moment
We need to talk about the mental health aspect because it’s something Saraya has been incredibly brave about lately. In her 2025 book Hell in Boots: Clawing My Way Through Nine Lives, she goes into gut-wrenching detail.
- She suffered from stress-induced anorexia.
- She lost her hair in clumps due to the sheer anxiety of the public shaming.
- She admitted to being suicidal, even contemplating it while on a FaceTime call with her mother.
It’s easy to look at a search result and forget there’s a person on the other side of it. She was being mocked in arenas. Fans were chanting about the videos during her matches. It was "viral humiliation" at its most toxic.
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From Rock Bottom to "Fighting With My Family"
The turnaround is kinda wild if you think about it.
While the internet was still buzzing about the paige wwe sex tape video, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson was busy producing a movie about her life. Fighting With My Family came out in 2019, starring Florence Pugh. It didn't shy away from her struggles, though it focused more on her journey to the WWE.
The movie helped flip the narrative. Instead of being "the girl from the video," she became the girl who overcame everything.
The Legal Reality
Hackers often get away with this stuff because the internet is a borderless void. However, the 2017 leaks were part of a broader wave often referred to as "Fappening 2.0." While some individuals involved in the 2014 original leaks served time, the specific hackers who targeted Saraya remained largely anonymous in the public record.
What she did do, however, was take back her name. By 2022, she left WWE and debuted in AEW under her real name, Saraya. She proved she didn't need the "Paige" moniker—or the approval of the trolls—to be a star.
Moving Forward: Actionable Insights on Digital Privacy
If there is anything to learn from what happened to Saraya, it's that "private" is a relative term in the digital age. Whether you're a world-famous wrestler or just someone with a smartphone, the risks are identical.
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1. Audit Your Cloud Syncing
Most people don't realize their phones are automatically uploading every photo and video to iCloud or Google Photos. If you don't need it there, turn it off. Saraya’s content was years old; hackers often dig for the "forgotten" files.
2. The Power of Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
It’s annoying, but it works. Use an authenticator app rather than SMS-based codes, which can be intercepted via SIM swapping.
3. Digital Hygiene is Mental Health Hygiene
If you ever find yourself the victim of non-consensual image sharing, know that there are resources. Organizations like the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative provide legal and emotional support for victims of "revenge porn" and hacking.
4. Change the Conversation
The next time a leak happens, remember the human cost. The "entertainment" value of a stolen video is never worth the potential loss of a life. Saraya survived, but many don't.
Today, Saraya is a voice for sobriety, mental health, and survivors of cyberbullying. She didn't let a 2017 hack define her career, and she certainly didn't let it end her story. She took the "massive negative," as she once called it, and turned it into a platform for genuine change.
To stay truly secure in 2026, start by reviewing your third-party app permissions. Often, old apps you no longer use still have access to your photo galleries and personal data, creating a back-door for potential breaches.