December 14, 2016

New York joined twelve other states, the District of Columbia, and the Federal Trade Commission in announcing a $17.5 million settlement with ruby Corp., which owns the dating website AshleyMadison.com. The settlement follows an investigation into the July 2015 hack of the website that resulted in the online publication of user information for millions of AshleyMadison.com members, including photographs, usernames, email addresses, communications, and other profile information. The settlement includes an immediate payment of $1,657,000 divided amongst the states and the Federal Trade Commission, of which New York will receive $81,330.94. The remainder of the $17.5 million payment is suspended based on ruby Corp.’s inability to pay. Up to 652,627 New York residents were members of Ashley Madison at the time of the security breach. NY

Tagged in: Government Investigation,