Two Canadian law firms have filed a £368 million lawsuit against the companies that run Ashley Madison after a hacker group’s data breach exposed some 39 million memberships of the adultery website.

Charney Lawyers and Sutts, Strosberg, both of Ontario, said they filed the class-action lawsuit on behalf of Canadians who subscribed to Ashley Madison and whose personal information was disclosed to the public.

The website, with its slogan “Life is short. Have an affair,” is marketed to facilitate extramarital relationships.

(Lauren Hurley/PA)

The lawsuit, filed on Thursday in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, targets Avid Dating Life and Avid Life Media, the Toronto-based companies that run AshleyMadison.com. Its class-action status “still needs to be certified by the court,” the statement says.

Ashley Madison did not respond to requests for comment. It has said that the personal details exposed in the initial data leak can’t be used to prove the infidelity of their clients.

The plaintiff is Eliot Shore, an Ottawa widower. He said he joined the website for a short time in search of companionship after he lost his wife to breast cancer. He said he never cheated and never met up with any members of the site.

Lawyer Ted Charney told The Associated Press it is the first class-action suit filed against the companies in Canada.