Ashley Madison, the adultery website that was hacked last year, is under investigation by the US Federal Trade Commission for its use of bots to chat with paying male customers, the company said.

The dating website was attacked by cybercriminals last summer, exposing the identities of its would-be adulterer subscribers and internal documents that appeared to show that it used so-called fembots so that men would believe they were engaging with real women willing to have an affair.

Avid Life Media, which owns Ashley Madison and other dating sites including Cougar Life and Established Men, has appointed a new chief executive, Rob Segal, to attempt a fresh start at the company.

Mr Segal, the former chief executive of World Gaming, told Reuters that the FTC had been investigating its use of bots, and a spokesperson confirmed the company had been “proactively sharing information with regulatory authorities” since August 2015. The FTC did not respond to requests for comment.

Mr Segal said bots, thought to have been deployed because there were far more men than women on the site, were no longer used. James Millership, newly appointed as president at Ashley Madison after working under Mr Segal at WorldGaming, added: “My understanding is that bots are widespread in the industry, but they are no longer being used, and will not be used, at Avid Life Media and Ashley Madison.”

Ashley Madison, which used to advertise itself with the tagline “Life is short. Have an affair” is trying to reposition itself as the dating website for the “open-minded” and people with an “adventurous spirit”, rather than strictly those looking for extramarital affairs. It is looking at acquisitions, partnerships and a total rebranding, Mr Millership said.

The company’s chief executive, Noel Biderman, stepped down “by mutual agreement” in August last year after details of up to 37m members were posted online by a hacker group calling itself The Impact Team. The fallout included at least one lawsuit and an investigation by the police in Toronto, where the company is based, into possible suicides connected to the breach.

The trove of data dumped online also made many question its business model after tech site Gizmodo concluded it was likely that only about 12,000 of the 37m members were women.

Mr Segal said Avid Life Media had been silenced by the cyber attack. “The company is truly sorry for how people’s lives and relationships may have been affected by the criminal theft of personal information,” he said.

Avid Life Media has now invested more in cyber defences including partnering Deloitte’s cyber security team and introducing new “secure and discreet” payment options, Mr Segal said.

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