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Toronto - The chief executive officer of AshleyMadison.com’s parent company is stepping down a week after hackers released the personal information of millions of users of the adultery website.
Noel Biderman, who led Toronto-based Avid Life Media, is no longer with the company, according to a statement released Friday.
“This change is in the best interest of the company and allows us to continue to provide support to our members and dedicated employees,” Avid Life said in the statement.
READ: Check if your spouse is on Ashley Madison
In July, hackers calling themselves the “Impact Team” said they had infiltrated the company’s database and threatened to release user information if Ashley Madison didn’t shut down.
On August 18, information on millions of users was posted online.
Toronto police said this week the leaked data included e-mail and home addresses, transaction records and partial credit card information.
READ: MAP - Ashley Madison users around the world
Law enforcement agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the US Department of Homeland Security and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police have joined the investigation and Avid Life is offering a C$500 000 ($378 000) reward for information that helps identify and prosecute the hackers.
A former sports agent who studied law at York University’s Osgoode Hall, Biderman started Ashley Madison in 2002 with the idea that cheaters were an underserved market and needed their own online-dating service.
In 2011, the site had grown to 8.5 million users. That number has since quadrupled to 36 million in 46 countries.
Ashley Madison will continue operating, led by the existing management team until a new CEO is named, Avid Life said in the statement.
“We are actively adjusting to the attack on our business and members’ privacy by criminals,” the company said.
“We will continue to provide access to our unique platforms for our worldwide members.”
Avid Life said in April that it was planning to raise as much $200m in an initial public offering in London this year. The company declined to comment on how Biderman’s departure would affect the IPO.
