Online Adult Affair Site Hacked

40,000 very nervous Irish people I'd imagine

http://www.independent.ie/business/technology/ashley-madison-attack-hackers-threaten-to-expose-375m-cheaters-who-use-adultery-site-31389725.html

Ashley Madison, the website for people seeking extramarital affairs, has suffered a major cyber attack, with hackers threatening to expose the names of adulterers unless the site is taken offline.

The controversial online dating company, which has 37.5m users – including 40,000 from Ireland – carries the tagline: “Life Is Short. Have An Affair”. The service is founded on confidentiality and privacy, claiming to be a "100pc discreet service" and boasting a "Trusted Security Award" on its homepage.

The hackers, going by the name “The Impact Team”, posted a small sample of sensitive data, along with a statement demanding the takedown of Ashley Madison and Established Men, an online dating site that claims to connect "young, beautiful women with successful men". The data and the statement have since been taken offline.

Avid Life Media, the company that owns Ashley Madison, confirmed the hack and apologised for "this unprovoked and criminal intrusion into our customers' information".

"We have always had the confidentiality of our customers' information foremost in our minds, and have had stringent security measures in place, including working with leading IT vendors from around the world," the company said in a statement.