Arkansas among states reaching settlement with infidelity site Ashley Madison over hack

Arkansas will receive nearly $53,000 as part of a multimillion-dollar settlement with the owner of infidelity website Ashley Madison after a 2015 data breach exposed residents’ information.

The state attorney general’s office said Wednesday that Arkansas, 12 other states, the District of Columbia and the Federal Trade Commission agreed to settle for $17.5 million with Toronto-based Ruby Corp., which owns the affair website.

Arkansas will receive $52,829.69 of an immediate payment totaling about $1.7 million. The remainder of the $17.5 million is suspended based on the company’s “inability to pay a further amount,” a statement reads.

“While I do not condone the activities of those who joined the Ashley Madison website, it is my job as attorney general to take action when Arkansans’ data is breached," Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge said.

Millions of names were listed as part of the hack, including a Josh Duggar with the same address as the former reality TV star, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette previously reported.

The figure on 19 Kids and Counting, who did not address whether he used Ashley Madison, later apologized for cheating on his wife and a “secret addiction” to pornography.

Upcoming Events