Security News > 2020 > February > Ashley Madison Breach Extortion Scam Targets Hundreds

Nearly five years after the high-profile Ashley Madison data breach, hundreds of impacted website users are being targeted by a new extortion attack this past week.

Victims are receiving emails threatening to expose their Ashley Madison accounts - along with other embarrassing data - to family and friends on social media and via email, unless they pay a Bitcoin ransom.

Researchers said these emails are highly personalized with information from the Ashley Madison breach - including the affected users' names, bank account numbers, telephone numbers, addresses, and birthdays, as well as Ashley Madison site info such as the signup dates and answers to security questions.

"Lastly, like other phishing and scam emails, this attack creates a sense of urgency, setting a deadline of six days for the Bitcoin payment to be received in order to avoid having the recipient's Ashley Madison account data shared publicly," said researchers.

"This Ashley Madison extortion scam is a good example that a data breach is never one and done," said Hadley.

News URL

https://threatpost.com/ashley-madison-breach-extortion-scam-targets-hundreds/152481/