Joe Jonas
Photo: Dave Hogan/Getty Images

Jonas Brothers frontman Joe Jonas has come to the defense of 15-year-old pop sensation Miley Cyrus, mere days after racy photographs surfaced online of the "Hannah Montana" star.

While Jonas maintains that he's yet to see the risqué snapshots, he believes Cyrus can rise above the backlash of negative press she's been experiencing since the photos - one depicting the squeaky-clean Cyrus wearing just a bra and underwear while draped across the lap of an unnamed male, and another in which she's pulling down her shirt to reveal a green bra - starting making the Internet rounds.

"We're good friends of hers, and we got her back and we love her to death," Jonas told Us Weekly. "I think it's just the way you come out of it. As much as they say, no one's perfect and everybody makes their mistakes. I think it's the way you handle it and come out of it the proper and respectful way."

Of course, the Jonas Brothers forged a friendship with Cyrus during her North American Best of Both Worlds Tour last fall; the band served as the opening act on most of the sold-out trek.

The photos of Cyrus that hit the Web this week aren't the only ones floating around the ether. Some months ago, a batch of eyebrow-raising shots - in which the singer and a female friend nearly kissed as they shared a piece of licorice - were posted to Cyrus' MySpace page. Others showed the singer posing suggestively in a bikini and her underwear. The singer responded to the scandal over the first batch of pictures by saying they were "nothing bad," as she was just having a sleepover at a hotel with one of her best friends.

The pictures - the origin of which remains a mystery - are the latest hint that the singer is in the midst of a transformation that could take her from a tween sensation to a more mature artist. Some fans have interpreted the pictures as a red flag, fearing that Cyrus may be headed down the same path troubled female stars like Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears have followed.