MADISON, Wis. — University of Wisconsin police are investigating how private photos and video of members of the school’s national champion women’s volleyball team were circulated publicly without their consent.

Marc Lovicott, the executive director of communications for UW police, said the pictures came from a player's phone. However, the athletic department said that UWPD is not investigating the volleyball players “for wrongdoing in this matter." 

It is unclear who obtained these photos, how they were obtained and who shared them online.

Lovicott said the department is investigating how the photos got out to social media and the internet. Police are looking into if the phone, or a cloud system, was hacked. 

According to the athletic department, the photos were not intended to be shared. The exact content of what was in those photos and videos was not specified. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said one photo appeared to be taken after Wisconsin clinched the Big Ten championship last season.

“The unauthorized sharing is a significant and wrongful invasion of the student-athletes’ privacy, including potential violations of university policies and criminal statutes. When the student-athletes became aware of the circulating photos, they contacted the UW-Madison Police Department,” the athletics department said in a statement released Wednesday.

The athletic department said “UWPD is investigating multiple crimes, including sharing sensitive photos without consent.” 

“Our top priority is supporting our student-athletes, and we are providing them with the appropriate services and resources,” the athletic department said. The university did not specify what those services and resources entailed.

This story is developing. Check back for updates.