Ashley Madison Boss Steps Down After Data Hack

The man who set up the adultery website Ashley Madison has stepped down as CEO of its parent firm Avid Life Media after it was hacked.

Noel Biderman, the so-called 'King of Infidelity' is no longer with the company, Avid Life Media said.

It (Other OTC: ITGL - news) follows a huge security breach in which the details of millions of members were stolen and then dumped online.

At least two people may have have committed suicide as a result of the data breach, police in Canada have said, and lawyers have reported several people enquiring about divorce proceedings.

The statement, as reported on the TechCrunch website, says: "Until the appointment of a new CEO, the company will be led by the existing senior management team.

"This change is in the best interest of the company and allows us to continue to provide support to our members and dedicated employees. We are steadfast in our commitment to our customer base.

"We are actively adjusting to the attack on our business and members’ privacy by criminals. We will continue to provide access to our unique platforms for our worldwide members."

The company said it will continue working with police to find out who was responsible for the hack.

Details of more than 37 million users, including at least one million in the UK, were said to have been stolen during the cyberattack last month.

Toronto-based Avid Life Media offered a reward of C$500,000 (£240,000) to catch the hackers.

Ashley Madison, whose slogan is "Life is short. Have an affair", acted like a dating website for people who sought to have extra marital relations.

Hackers dropped a gigantic file of information about users of the adultery dating website on to the dark web, sparking a scramble to create a searchable database of all those named.

There were reports that 15,000 US military and government email addresses are registered on the database, including executives in high-level positions.

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation said it was joining the investigation into who had hacked the site, but did not provide details.

There was no immediate comment from Mr Biderman.

:: Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 08457 90 90 90 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.