AshleyMadison.com, the website for cheating spouses, that was built mainly by affiliate and performance marketing, is in deep trouble, as stolen data of all users from the website has been posted online. According to a report on Wired, 9.7 GB worth of data was posted “to the dark web using an Onion address accessible only through the Tor browser.”
In a statement explaining the data dump, hackers from The Impact Team, wrote,
“Avid Life Media has failed to take down Ashley Madison and Established Men. We have explained the fraud, deceit, and stupidity of ALM and their members. Now everyone gets to see their data.
Find someone you know in here? Keep in mind the site is a scam with thousands of fake female profiles. See ashley madison fake profile lawsuit; 90-95% of actual users are male. Chances are your man signed up on the world’s biggest affair site, but never had one. He just tried to. If that distinction matters.
Find yourself in here? It was ALM that failed you and lied to you. Prosecute them and claim damages. Then move on with your life. Learn your lesson and make amends. Embarrassing now, but you’ll get over it.”
A complete list of breakdown of the email addresses used by AshleyMadison’s customers, has also been pasted on Pastebin. The list is organized on the basis on domain names used by AshleyMadison customers and according to a report on CSOOnline “15,019 accounts are using either a .mil or .gov email address.
According to the Wired report, hackers have revealed “account details and log-ins for some 32 million users” of AshleyMadision, along with “seven years worth of credit card and other payment transaction.”
While verifying on the basis of email ids will be tough, since some email IDs might just be false as the CSO report also notes, the fact that hackers have revealed detailed payment history also, will probably land many into trouble. Additionally on PasteBin a sample detail of an AshleyMadison member’s account has also been posted, which appears to have messages posted by users when connecting with other potential cheaters on the website.
AshleyMadison.com is owned by Avid Life Media (ALM), a Toronto-based firm. ALM also owns other dating sites like Cougar Life and Established Men.
AshleyMadison was targeted by hackers, partly because of the $20 fee that it would charge users if they wanted their profile deleted completely. According to the hackers, data of even those who had paid the fee was still very much present. The Impact Team has also accused ALM of running a prostitution ring with the website called Established Men which aims to connect rich men with attractive girls.
After the hackers revealed the data, ALM has said that FBI is investigating the data breach. It was the first time Avid Line Media confirmed the FBI had joined the investigation. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Ontario Provincial Police and the Toronto Police Services are also involved, it said in a statement.
The hackers have appointed themselves as “the moral judge, juror, and executioner, seeing fit to impose a personal notion of virtue on all of society,” the statement from ALM said. “These are illegitimate acts that have real consequences for innocent citizens who are simply going about their daily lives. ”
