The recent hack of dating website Ashley Madison, which specilaises in facilitating affairs for their users, could have huge repercussions. 

Two Canadian law firms, Charney Lawyers and Sutts, Strosberg have lodged a class action suit on behalf of their clients who used the service and had their data leaked as a result. 

In total, 39 million users were affected by the hack, and the cost of the suit could be as much as $578 million for Avid Dating Life and Avid Life Media, the two Toronto-based companies that run AshleyMadison.com.

The suit was filed on Thursday with the Ontario superior court, and Ted Charney of Charney Laywyers stated that his clients "are outraged that AshleyMadison.com failed to protect its users’ information. In many cases, the users paid an additional fee for the website to remove all of their user data, only to discover that the information was left intact and exposed". 

Ottawa widow Eliot Shore is the plaintiff in the action, who states that he registered for the service after the death of his wife, but never met up with any other members or was unfaithful.

Ashley Madison have not yet responded to requests for comments on the suit. 

Via The Guardian