At least two Canadians may have committed suicide following the hacking of the Ashley Madison cheating website, local police have warned.

In recent days, hackers exposed the names and private details of hundreds of thousands of users of the dating website, which marketed itself as a safe forum for adulterers.

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Canadian police told local media they received unconfirmed reports of the apparent suicides on Monday morning, but declined to provide any more details.

“The social impact behind this [hacking] — we’re talking about families. We’re talking about their children, we’re talking about their wives, we’re talking about their male partners,””Your actions are illegal and will not be tolerated. This is your wake-up call,” Toronto Police acting staff superintendent Bryce Evans said.

“It’s going to have impacts on their lives. We’re now going to have hate crimes that are a result of this.

“There are so many things that are happening. The reality is … this is not the fun and games that has been portrayed.”

Canadian police said the leak had also sparked extortion attempts and could trigger scams directed at clients desperate to stop the exposure of their infidelity.

Avid Life Media Inc, the parent company of the website, offered a C$500,000 ($524,183) reward to catch the hackers.

“Your actions are illegal and will not be tolerated. This is your wake-up call,” Superintendent Evans said.

Australian privacy watchdogs are currently investigating the hack.

Anyone in Australia experiencing suicidal thoughts can call Lifeline Australia’s crisis helpline on 13 11 14