Written in Partnership with Pleasure SeekerLast month I put my credit card info into Ashley Madison, a famous “Affair site”, and purchased 100 credits for $59.
Why?
Ever since I heard about the site, I loved the idea of it.
Horny housewives looking for any guy willing to keep a secret? Sign me up! Finally, a hookup site system that seemed to put the odds in my favor. It seemed a bit too good to be true though, so i wanted to test if it’s actually a legit site.
After over 100 long messages and 2 weeks into using it, I actually got some interesting meetups which I’ll share throughout this Ashley Madison review. But first…
Ashley Madison Review: What is Beyond the Pay Page?
Many people who are new to this site wonder what is beyond the pay page. I am the guinea pig, the person who took the chance for you.
After purchasing credits, I realized that Ashley Madison is exactly the same site with or without going premium as a new member. So you can comfortably explore the main features and highlights, get the gist of the entire paid operation, and even read the messages from users all for free. Credits are needed to reply to those messages.
The free account gives you a lot of leeway on the freeway. You have the power to update your rights reserved private photos, customize the profile, and move members’ accounts to the Favorites folder without coughing up the cash.
The best women to chase are the ones with verified photos, obviously, and there are plenty of them. Yes, you can see their profiles for no charge whatsoever.
My first affair clashed with an older woman who was looking for the same thing as me–someone to take care of in a relationship. After a brief chat, we arrived at a conclusion we were not compatible.
My next match was with another woman who already has had a relationship using affair sites this year and wanted another one with me. I unfollowed her account, and used the contact us button to report her fake profile. There is a difference between a bad guy and a BAD GUY. Some people can’t be trusted.
But I commend AshleyMadison’s privacy policy for keeping me safe. I got the power to change my preferences regarding body type, interests, gender, and a whole lotta stuff. That’s how I found HER.
What’s the verdict?
A woman can only see your face if you allow her to and vice versa. This feature keeps your wife from discovering your secret life if someone you both know is on the site as well.
Ashley Madison gets a generous 8/10 for the accessibility. 7/10 for the number of women, but 5/10 because it took many messages for me to find that one special lady. However, I give a 10/10 for actually finding me someone eventually and not wasting too much time on bots, thots, and scammers.
I also liked the fact that they have bonuses that give you 100 free messages from time to time, so i didn’t have to spend as much as on other sites i’ve tried.
Similar sites i’ve tried that give different results and have different crowds:
- Adult Friend Finder: Site for anyone looking for casual sex, no strings attached.
- Seeking: Best site for meeting attractive young women. (See my full seeking.com review)
What’s the Scoop on the 2015 Data Breach Hack? Is Ashley Madison Safe? The Answer…
Ultimately, giving your credit card details to AshleyMadison.com is like giving it to any company. Trustworthy. They can get sued for misuse.
The 2015 data breach that opened a Pandora box of sextortions, suicides, public apologies, and further lies affected everyone. Luckily, my wife is a total dimwit at times-I say that respectfully- because she seemed unbothered by the security breach. If only she knew…
I only encountered a few Blackmail attempts, which I cunningly blamed on the cable guy prank calling me due to a petty quarrel about the service, and several weeks later, the turmoil subsided. However, I digress. The information gained during that breach was invaluable and will forever circulate the internet and change how we interact with dating hookup sites, but the buck did not stop there.
Ashley Madison has upgraded their system tremendously to prevent these unwarranted intrusions and breaches. Believe me, when I say the AM CEO does not want to shell out another $1.6 mill fine.
Here are the following security upgrades and modifications:
- Learning from the mistakes and implementing recovery methods
- Created a new network design and enhanced cybersecurity model
- Removed artifacts and leftover injections
- Basic SSL security encrypted padlock to protect credit cards from getting jacked and shared
- Https protocols that help protect sensitive info
- Strengthened credentials like password reset and requiring more layers of authentication
Does Ashley Madison Have Bots?
It does not seem like Ashley Madison uses bots on the surface, but there might be something more sinister underneath the dark veil. First, let me say that this is a great site regardless, and one of the easiest I’ve ever used to date-better than AFF, POF, and Tinder. Moreover, the women are very real.
Bots are everywhere on hookup websites from Adult Friend Finder to Fuckbook. It’s the nature of online dating sites. We can’t change it no matter how hard we try.
Bots are on low-income generating sites that cannot generate enough income. So they use these auto-message programs to boost the male ego and encourage the populous to stay there. You should see the smile on their faces thinking Katherine is really in their area and wants to meet with them for a booty call.
Let me quit with the sentiment and get down to the nitty-gritty. Gizmodo surveyed data after the hack and found that 70,529 of the hosts and over 20.3 million messages were from bots sent to men.1492 male bots sent to women.
Hopefully, Ashley Madison learned its lesson and does not use bots anymore. There are plenty of unhappy people scattered across the United States, who are beyond willing to use the site to cheat and hookup.
What may surprise you after the hack, membership exploded as it got tons of free press coverage, the site became insanely popular and growing at an alarming rate. Waking up horny mummies to explore newfoundland and take over. We all can admit the bad publicity helped out. Can you say free publicity?
Is Ashley Madison Free? How Much Does Ashley Madison Cost?
Women have the richest man free choice, while men have to pay for credits to have a conversation with a woman. Here are the following prices:
- 100 credits for $44 (extra 100 credits with the bonus)
- 500 credits for $134
- 1000 credits for $224
Suppose you get lucky and actually get the bonus credits. In this case, the credit amount doubles. So instead of 100 credits, you will get 200 credits.
Are the Ashley Madison Credits Worth Purchasing?
You will need to play a numbers game on Ashley Madison to navigate around the bots and scammers to real women. Confirmed profiles show who is who, and that’s who you should not target the photo that looks good because you never know who is behind the computer.
The credits are worth purchasing if you get the bonus credits because half might get wasted on bots. However, spending money on Ashley Madison is useful if you are serious about having an affair and dating someone outside the marriage.
What Type of People Use the Ashley Madison Dating Service?
Oh man, this is the United States of America. Most powerful country on the planet, yet the highest divorce rates in the world. Everyone that you can think of uses Ashley Madison, from CEOs, military men, pastors, and even your regular Popeyes chicken worker. The majority are successful entrepreneurs, internet millionaires, or an old-school oil tycoon who wants to live out his days with a picturesque model.
However, men should beware of the few Nigerian scammers (which AM removes those profiles when they are reported) and escorts are masquerading as sugar babies with stomp down pimps lurking in the background. The infamous Ashley Madison hack of 2015 proved who is the base demographic.
When you arrive at the homepage, you will notice a language change preference, including English, Spanish, Portuguese Brazilian, Italian, French, Dutch, Portuguese, Chinese, and Japanese. These languages reflect the people. Ashley Madison is internationally known from the USA to India, with married people on every continent.
I will be very leery about trusting somebody on Backpage because you do not know much about them. Anything wrong can happen, especially when they get your phone number, which can expose your identity. Not on Ashley Madison. You can stay as secretive as you want, even paying for the credits using gift cards that are 100% untraceable.
Additionally, Ashley Madison gives an option to hide your identity with mask and blur filters, or not show your face if you choose.
The Traveling Man/Women option is designed for people who love to travel, and this option informs people in your targeted city that you are making a trip there. Therefore, you will only see profile results from that area.
Profile Surfing Experience: Review
Never judge a book by its cover. From the outside looking in Ashley Madison gave me the vibe that it would have a complicated user experience similar to what I found in my Adult Friend Finder review. After using all the features, I was surprised at the simple user experience. It was quite a pleasant one.
It has all the usuals like Favorites, Love, Winks, etc. Instant chat icon to talk with your potential. But every time I used to try and send a message, it brought up the credits page. I’m so glad I purchased the credits.
Final Word About Ashley Madison
All in all, Ashley Madison is one of the easiest surfing experiences ever. You can send a private key to a prospective dater to unlock your photos. The profiles have the vitals like zodiac sign, height, interests, and more. Though Gizmodo has proven there are bots on AM; the real women are in abundance. You only need to purchase premium credits to talk with them, and you are in the game.
Click here to visit the site and check out their features.
Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.