What is the Ashley Madison data breach?

The Ashley Madison data breach was a significant cyber-attack that occurred in July 2015, wherein hackers stole the personal information of users from Ashley Madison, a website known for encouraging extramarital affairs. The group responsible for the hack, calling themselves "The Impact Team," gained access to the site's database and subsequently threatened to release the sensitive data of millions of users if the website did not shut down. Despite this ultimatum, the company, Avid Life Media, refused to comply with the demands. As a result, The Impact Team published the stolen data, including names, email addresses, credit card information, and other identifying details. The breach had severe repercussions, leading to public embarrassment for users whose affairs were exposed, extortion attempts, and in some cases, reports of suicides linked to the exposure. The incident sparked widespread discussions about internet security, privacy, and the ethical implications of such services.