Assignment task: The Ashley Madison Agency, is a Canadian online dating service and social networking service marketed to people who are married or in relationships. It was founded in 2002 by Darren J. Morgenstern, with the slogan "Life is short. Have an affair". The name comes from two popular female names in North America, "Ashley" and "Madison".
The company received attention on July 15, 2015, after hackers "The Impact Team" stole all its customer data-including emails, names, home addresses, sexual fantasies and credit card information-and threatened to post the data online if AshleyMadison.com was not permanently closed. AshleyMadison.com did not give into the threats and the Impact Team followed through, making all of the customer's information available to anyone who wanted to look up the information.
Outcomes:
AshelyMadison: Received a $17.5 million dollar fine for not following correct safety measures to protect their client's personal information.
Customers: Suffered great psychological consequences resulting form the hack. Not only did they have to deal with an affair publicly (some were being blackmailed, co-workers, families and friends could look up the list) it also affected their spouses and children. A good number of those affected sank into depression and anxiety. Tragically, two suicides were traced to the hack, one of a pastor and a professor at the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.
The Impact Team: No one has been linked to the hacking which has led to no arrests or punishment.
Questions for your Response:
Q1. Which of these three groups (the website company, the users, or the hackers) do you consider the most deviant and why?
Q2. Are there any of these groups or behavior you would not find as "deviant"? Why or why not?
Q3. Considering both legal punishments and personal repercussions, do you believe the parties received the punishment they deserved, or was the punishment to harsh?