Ashley Madison and the psychology of cheating and apologizing


The Ashley Madison hack has sparked 'spin off' crimes including extortion and may have led to two suicides, Canadian police say.

Meanwhile, the adultery website's parent company has offered a sizeable reward for leads on the culprits.

The release last week of stolen emails and data from some 32 million members of the Canada-based site, including payment transactions, email addresses and phone numbers, has stirred up a privacy nightmare for users.

'As of this morning, we have two unconfirmed reports of suicides associated to the leak of Ashley Madison customer profiles,' Toronto police Staff Superintendent Bryce Evans told a news conference on Monday.

Evans also pointed to crimes including extortion, blackmail and online scams claiming to provide access to the leaked data and offers to delete it from the web for a fee.

One scam threatens to expose clients unless payment of 1.05 bitcoins or $C300 ($A315) is received, saying in an email: 'Consider how expensive a divorce lawyer is... and then think about how this will affect your social standing amongst family and friends. What will your friends and family think about you?'

The data dump on the so-called 'dark web' comes a month after a hacker group identified as the 'Impact Team' stole the files, saying they were trying to shut down the site.

'This hack is one of the largest data breaches in the world and is very unique on its own, in that it exposed tens of millions of people's personal information including their credit card data,' Evans said.

'The ripple effect of the Impact Team's action has and will continue to have a long-term social and economic impact,' he said.

'They have already sparked spin-offs of crimes and further victimisation.'

Ashley Madison, launched in 2001, is known for its slogan: 'Life is short. Have an affair.'

It helps connect people seeking to have extramarital relationships and is owned by Avid Life Media.

Toronto police along with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Ontario Provincial Police, US Homeland Security and the American FBI are investigating the hack, dubbing the probe 'Project Unicorn.'

Australian and Canadian privacy watchdogs are also jointly looking into the data breach.

Evans said Ashley Madison is cooperating with the investigation and police have found 'no criminal wrongdoing' by the company, as was alleged by the hackers.

Avid Life Media meanwhile is offering a $C500,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the hackers.

Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467

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