Ashley Madison is a discreet infidelity dating website for married people only and touts itself as "global leader for affairs." Business is booming. Licensed Professional Counselor Shannon Thornton explains the site's allure this way, “Like-minded adults with the same need looking for a platform to find each other to have fill the same needs without having to go any further.”
Thornton says couples in cities could be overwhelmed with the demands of their lives but still feel something is missing, “There’s usually nothing wrong with their spouse, it’s just that the cheating partner has reached a point in their life that they want the excitement of something new and don’t want any strings attached.”
Three years ago the site was breached exposing 36 million customers' private information. Still, the numbers keep rising with Seattle having the most members in the country. Houston is eighth.