RHONY Stars Kristen And John Taekman's Dating Site Scandal, Explained
Former cast member of "The Real Housewives of New York City," Kristen Taekman, joined the series in its sixth season, which aired in 2014. Joining before the "RHONYC" cast rebrand, the model and Last Nights Look founder attracted a fanbase for her bubbly personality and sense of humor. However, viewers saw her marriage to her husband, Josh Taekman, hit a rocky patch on the show as well, with her even suggesting the couple may get a divorce. Shortly before Season 7 premiered, the now-infamous Ashley Madison hack occurred, and Josh's name was among the site's users seeking an extramarital affair.
After news broke that Josh's name was on the list of people using the site to find eligible partners to cheat with, an insider told People that "Kristen is extremely embarrassed and upset over thinking [Josh] was having affairs." Josh initially denied using the site before confessing that he indeed had an account on Ashley Madison. However, hackers revealed that Josh did much more than simply browse the racy website.
John Taekman spent thousands on Ashley Madison
When Josh Taekman was outed as an Ashley Madison user, he told the Daily Mail in August 2015 that he was a victim of scammers. "I don't understand. There's not a shot in hell that I'm a subscriber. I have no knowledge of that this is the first I've ever heard of it," he said, adding, "This is crazy. I saw it on the TV the other day about the security breach, and we were laughing about it. It is what it is, but somebody is definitely fraudulently using my name and number."
This explanation may have worked if hackers had not revealed his personal information and the extent of his usage of the platform. In the report by the Daily Mail, Taekman reportedly made 62 payments to the site totaling thousands over the three years of his membership, which began in 2011. There is no fee to sign up for Ashley Madison but members can purchase credits, which are used to send messages. Users may buy 100 credits for $49, while 1,000 credits are $250. Even more incriminating was that the billing address associated with the credit card information used by Josh corresponded to the Tribeca residence he shares with Kristen Taekman. Records showed that Josh remained active on the site until around June 2014, which would have been months after they began appearing on "RHONYC" in March 2014. With the evidence against him, Josh came clean but maintained his time on the site was innocent.
Kristen Taekman doesn't believe her husband had an affair
Shortly after the dating site scandal was unveiled, Josh Taekman decided to confess publicly that he willingly used Ashley Madison. In a statement to Us Weekly in August 2015, Josh explained, "I signed up for the site foolishly and ignorantly with a group of friends, and I deeply apologize for any embarrassment or pain I have brought to my wife and family. We both look forward to moving past this and getting on with our lives." Though he took accountability, Josh did not elaborate on how far he went on Ashley Madison.
Since Kristen Taekman did not return for Season 8 of "The Real Housewives of New York City," fans did not get to see how the couple navigated the scandal, as Season 7 was already done filming once the hack occurred. Nevertheless, Kristen reportedly did her own probe into the extent of her husband's alleged affair-seeking. An insider told People during the ordeal, "As of now, she is being her own P.I. and investigating. She's looking through phone records and asking him questions."
It seems that whatever Kristen found was enough to satisfy her because years after the scandal, she is confident Josh did not have an affair. In December 2023, ahead of the "The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: RHONY Legacy" premiere, Kristen confidently told People, "[H]e never cheated on me, and it was never a problem in our marriage." Now married for 19 years, it seems the Taekmans can overcome just about anything.