As the fallout from the leak of cheating website Ashley Madison's database continued with the release of a file containing every user's details, computer security researchers warned that it could be used for blackmail.

A group of hackers going by the alias "Impact Team" released an almost 10-gigabyte file on the internet on Wednesday morning containing what they claimed was Ashley Madison's entire database of 30 million users.

Ashley Madison boasts its ability to privately facilitate affairs between married individuals. Its slogan is "life is short, have an affair" – hence making the release of user accounts and personal details potentially very damaging for individuals involved.

By Wednesday afternoon, some Australian names and associated email addresses began to trickle out, prompting Australian security researcher Troy Hunt to warn that the information could be used for blackmail.