Is Ashley Madison Hack Story More About Cybersecurity Or Infidelity?

Published August 19, 2015 at 12:33 PM CDT

A June 10, 2015, photo shows Ashley Madison's website on a computer screen in Seoul, South Korea. (Lee Jin-man/AP)

Security experts are telling multiple news outlets today that the leaked names of Ashley Madison customers appear to be real. Ashley Madison markets itself with the tagline, "Life is short. Have an affair." About one month ago it was reported that the site had been hacked and the names and credit card numbers of 37 million customers could be posted online.

The group purportedly behind the hack threatened to release the information if Ashley Madison wasn’t shut down, claiming it was engaging in fraud and deceit. In a statement, Ashley Madison’s parent company said, “This event is not an act of hacktivism, it is an act of criminality. It is an illegal action against the individual members of AshleyMadison.com, as well as any freethinking people who choose to engage in fully lawful online activities.”

The site hasn’t yet verified if the leaked information is genuine. Maggie Lake of CNN discusses the story with Here & Now’s Lisa Mullins.

Guest

Maggie Lake, business reporter for CNN. She tweets @maggielake.