After making headlines due to a hacking scandal in 2015, the online dating website Ashley Madison has attracted the attention of a lot of new people.
Most people don’t understand how a dating site dedicated to dating outside of an established relationship has lasted so long and how it has remained so successful.
Whether you’re considering joining it or simply curious about it, here’s an explanation of how Ashley Madison works.
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What Is Ashley Madison?
Basically, it is a website for married people to have affairs.
Its main purpose is to provide a dating and social community for users who are in a relationship but want to date someone else at the same time.
It offers discretion to those who have such interests and provides a safe environment for them.
While the site is primarily used for users to have intimate extramarital affairs, not all users of Ashley Madison go on dates and physically cheat on their partners.
It should be noted that the site’s users are mostly male.
Information released in the 2015 hack of Ashley Madison also showed that there were around 70,000 bots or fake accounts on the site.
Ashley Madison’s parent company has worked to remove those bot accounts and make it harder for more to be created.
There have also been significant upgrades and modifications made for the site’s security to prevent future hacks as well.
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How Does Ashley Madison Work?
It uses a similar setup as other dating websites—users create an account, build a profile, and communicate with each other.
Signing up is free and users can include whatever they want on their profile.
Registering simply requires filling out basic personal information and providing a valid email.
Ashley Madison will then send a confirmation email that you can use to complete the registration process.
Users primarily use instant messaging and emailing features on the site to interact with each other.
There are also options for sending virtual gifts and photos.
Most of the communication features require male users to be the ones to initiate, but female users can still connect with guys who haven’t contacted them yet through the “collect messages” feature.
There are features such as the “private showcase keys” which allow a user to share photos and information that are marked as private with specific users of their choice.
Keys can also be revoked and there is also a blocking feature available.
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Does It Cost Anything To Use Ashley Madison?
There is a cost for using Ashley Madison, which is standard practice for many dating sites.
Joining and maintaining a profile is free, as well as replying to full members and searching for other users.
Other free options for users include sending and receiving photos through the site and adding members to their favorites list.
Everything else, including all other forms of communication through the site, requires a fee.
Most dating sites use a subscription service, with a flat fee per month that often is automatically charged to the user’s account.
Ashley Madison uses a credit system instead, with three tiers of memberships available for purchase.
The first tier is the Introductory Membership at $59 for 100 credits, the second tier Elite Membership at $169 for 500 credits, and the third tier Affair Guarantee Membership at $289 for 1000 credits.
All users, regardless of membership status, can purchase credits as they need them by logging in and clicking on a button that simply reads “Buy Credits.”
Should a user choose to delete their account, there is a “full delete” option where all of their data—profile, messages, etc.—can be removed.
Obviously, before joining a site such as Ashley Madison, you should consider the negatives of having an intimate relationship with someone who is married or in a long-term relationship.
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