Parent company of adultery site Ashley Madison ‘broke privacy laws in Canada and Australia’

The parent company of infidelity dating website Ashley Madison was responsible for numerous violations of privacy laws at the time of a massive release of customer data in a cyber attack last year, privacy watchdogs in Canada and Australia said on Tuesday.

The two countries launched an investigation after the 2015 breach of Avid Life Media Inc’s computer network, when hackers exposed the personal details of millions who signed up for the site with the slogan “Life is short. Have an affair.”

The probe found the Toronto-based company had inadequate safeguards in place, including poor password management and a fabricated security trustmark on the website’s home page.

The company, recently rebranded as Ruby Corp, has entered into agreements with authorities in both countries to comply with investigators’ recommendations, which are enforceable in court.

The company is also the target of a US Federal Trade Commission investigation, Avid Life Media executives said in July.

The FTC’s consumer protection unit investigates cases of deceptive advertising, including instances when consumers are told that their information is secure but then it is handled sloppily.