The Office of Personnel Management and Office of Management and Budget won't instigate a review or any disciplinary action, as that would fall under the purview of individual agencies, officials said.

There is a possibility that the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform decides to investigate, though any potential preliminary discussions on that wouldn't happen until after lawmakers come back from the August recess. Even then, the Committee has a full schedule, continuing deliberations on the recent OPM and IRS breaches.

More: Ashley Madison hack includes federal, military emails

The Pentagon would be the most likely to investigate, as adultery is a violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

"Of course it's an issue," Defense Secretary Ash Carter said during a press briefing on Aug. 20. "Conduct is very important and we expect good conduct on the part of our people. The services are looking into it – as well they should be."

A Pentagon spokesman clarified that it would be up to the individual branches to decide whether to pursue investigations.

Service members could face up to a year in prison, a dishonorable discharge and loss of their pension.

The repercussions won't be as severe for civilian employees.

Ethics of email, not adultery

"The implications are different between the military and the civil side," said Jim Tozzi, both a Navy veteran and former deputy administrator for OMB's Office of Regulatory Affairs, who now leads the Center for Regulatory Effectiveness.

Most of the civilian agencies don't have specific policies on adultery, Tozzi said, so long as it does not involve employees within the same agency. How employees conduct themselves in their personal time is not a significant concern unless it has a direct effect on the workplace.

"Let's say someone used that site: What injury is done to the government?" he said.

Tozzi pointed out these .gov email addresses are used to communicate with constituencies, meaning many are public knowledge already.

While carrying on an affair is not explicitly against civilian employee policy, the use of government email for unofficial business is.

Related: Rules don't always stop feds using personal devices at work

A 1993 directive from the Office of Government Ethics prohibited using official email accounts for personal use, establishing government emails as government property.

"An employee has a duty to protect and conserve government property and shall not use such property, or allow its use, for other than authorized purposes," according to the Standards for Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch.

While the regulation does not explicitly state what constitutes "authorized purposes," registering on a commercial website — particularly one created to facilitate extramarital affairs — clearly falls outside those bounds.

"The Ashley Madison hack is yet another example of how the lines between professional and personal email accounts and communications are constantly being blurred," said Mayer Mizrachi, CEO of email security firm Criptext.

In the wake of the hack, Mizrachi said agency employees should check their email security polices to ensure any sensitive information is safe and consider using streaming email plugins, which send emails as shells that can be recalled or deleted by the sender at any time.

"Last, and probably most obviously, reconsider how you're using your work email address for personal matters," he added.

About Aaron Boyd

Aaron Boyd is an awarding-winning journalist currently serving as editor of Federal Times — a Washington, D.C. institution covering federal workforce and contracting for more than 50 years — and Fifth Domain — a news and information hub focused on cybersecurity and cyberwar from a civilian, military and international perspective.

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