AFFECTED BY THE ASHLEY MADISON LEAK? DON'T CALL A PI

Our case of the week isn’t a case at all, it’s about the calls we’ve received related to the hack of Ashley Madison, a website intended for men that want to have affairs with married women.

In July, hackers informed the company that they had obtained millions of user data records, and told management if they shut down the site, the email addresses would not be released. Last week, the poker game ended when the user data was released, which included over 39 million accounts.

As mentioned, this data leak generated a number of inquires to our offices for a no-fee consultation. So far, we have not taken on a single case from anyone involved in or affected by this leak.

The calls have fallen into three different types, with the following free counsel being provided:

Type #1:
The spouse inquires what to do since they found their mate or significant other to be a part of the data release.

We ask them, “Do you really want to spend your hard-earned money hiring us to follow someone who signed up for Ashley Madison?” Take the “evidence” you already have and confront the person. Sure, there is the possibility that someone used their email on the site as a joke or even something more sinister but, in our world, that’s doubtful. Don’t always believe, “I signed up but I never acted on it.” Even if true, what was the rationale of signing up in the first place?

Type #2:
The spouse admits they are an Ashley Madison member. They want us to help them, so that their spouse won’t find out. They are concerned someone else will “out” them, and that they don’t want their spouse to know how much money they have spent on the site.  

We’ve told these people that these types of questions might be better answered by Ashley Madison, or in consult with a family law attorney. In this case, your money is not well spent with a private investigator and might be saved for a marriage counselor, an attorney or alimony and child support.

Type #3:
A spouse says they checked the information available in the leak, did not find their mate listed. They ask if there is anything else they can do.

We referred these callers to our book, “If You Only Knew,” (online for free at www.investigatorconfidential.com) – specifically Chapter 3, “The Cheating Spouse”. This chapter which contains 20 tips on determining if your spouse is cheating.

If nothing in your relationship has caused you concern about the faithfulness of your spouse, then why spend money just because your interest has been peaked by Ashley Madison headlines?

A side effect of this mess is that it has provided private investigators with a ton of publicity. Given all the grief, heartache and misery for families around the globe, not many of us are relishing it.