Inside the breach Toronto police reveal some elements of the investigation

The suicides: Toronto police said there are unconfirmed reports of two suicides related to the Ashley Madison hack, but declined to say anything further, including whether they were in Canada or elsewhere However, published reports in the U.S. said a police captain in San Antonio, Texas, killed himself days after his email address was leaked, but added it was unclear whether the man’s suicide was directly linked to the leak. Online scams Police said the initial release of information has triggered numerous “spinoff crimes.” One scheme targets those whose names were leaked and gives them three days to wire 1.05 bitcoins ($300) to an online account or have their secret exposed to Facebook friends. Another claims it can erase their names from the online database for a fee. Ashley Madison clients are not the only targets, however. A third scheme sends links claiming to provide the public with access to the online database and then infects computers with viruses, spyware and malware. Hate crimes Toronto police said hate crimes have been committed online as a result of the data leak. Toronto police Staff Supt. Bryce Evans did not elaborate further except to say the nature of the alleged crimes falls under Section 319. (1) of the Criminal Code: Everyone who, by communicating statements in any public place, incites hatred against any identifiable group where such incitement is likely to lead to a breach of the peace is guilty of (a) an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years; or (b) an offence punishable on summary conviction. Wilful promotion of hatred (2) Every one who, by communicating statements, other than in private conversation, wilfully promotes hatred against any identifiable group is guilty of (a) an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years; or (b) an offence punishable on summary conviction. Multi-level involvement Toronto police are working with the Ontario Provincial Police, Ontario’s attorney general, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and law enforcement groups around the world. Appeal to hacker community Toronto police appealed to hackers to “do the right thing” and come forward with information about the Impact Team. Evans said he believes the Ashley Madison hack has been discussed in the online community and referenced Anonymous’ help in the Rehtaeh Parsons case. He said Toronto police also have a presence on the dark web, a hidden corner of the Internet not reachable by search engines. Warning to Impact Team Evans said he believed Impact Team would be watching the conference. “Team Impact, I want to make it very clear to you: your actions are illegal and will not be tolerated. This is your wake-up call we are now in a serious investigation, inviting all our partnerships from around the world to assist us in this investigation,” he said.

“We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners around the world in order to stop or minimize the social, economic impacts of your actions to stop the criminals from capitalizing on your reckless and illegal activity.” The tactics Avid Life Media is offering a reward of $500,000 for anyone with information leading to the arrest of those responsible. Toronto Police have set up a Twitter account for tips @AMCaseTPS and hashtag #AMCaseTPS. The phone number for tips on the case is 416-808-2040 or Crime Stoppers at 416-222-TIPS. Investigation by privacy commissioner Canada’s privacy watchdog said Monday it will investigate the security breach at the Ashley Madison website.

“Given that the company is based in Canada, and considering the global scope of the incident, our office will be investigating jointly with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, and in co-operation with other international counterparts,” a spokeswoman for the Office of the Privacy Commissioner said in an emailed statement. With files from Robin Levinson King