Cybersecurity

Dating website hack leaks data of 4M users

Security 'critical' for Cisco: CFO
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Security 'critical' for Cisco: CFO

Personal data from user profiles on a popular dating website may be vulnerable after a potential cyberattack.

Adult FriendFinder—which has about 63 million users worldwide—has launched an investigation into a "potential data security incident," the company said Friday. The site could not confirm how many account were affected, but said it was temporarily disabling features including search functions to protected possibly compromised accounts.

"Protecting our members' information is our top priority and we will continue to take the appropriate steps needed to protect our members and their information," the company said in a statement.

Rafe Swan | Getty Images

Britain's Channel 4 first reported that Adult FriendFinder had been hacked on Thursday. About 4 million users had information leaked in the breach, the network reported.

Some users had sexual preferences, dates of birth or email addresses leaked in the hack, according to the report. The hacker posted the details to a forum.

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Criminals could potentially use the exposed data to find blackmail targets, cybersecurity experts told the television channel. One user has received apparent spam emails since the data was leaked.