Deep Internet: what happens there and how to get there. On the dark side of the Internet: What is the Dark Web and Deep Web
The Internet that we are used to is in fact only a part (albeit larger) of the real World Wide Web. There are corners in it that most ordinary users or search robots will never get to. The name of these corners is the Darknet...
We are used to perceiving the Internet rather one-sidedly. Most users are sure that this is only what we see in our browser. In fact, the World Wide Web (aka WWW) is far from the only segment of the Internet! This is only the visible part of it, around which there are many different narrow and broadly specialized networks that we usually do not notice or the existence of which we do not even suspect...
Meanwhile, life and active communication also exist in the deep Internet. In anonymous networks, various dark personalities exchange all kinds of secret information, trade prohibited goods and carry out all sorts of frauds. An ordinary user, in principle, does not need all this, but... interesting :) Therefore, I invite you to a short excursion to the Darknet.
What can be considered the Darknet?
Unlike the regular Internet, there is no separate darknet. There are several unrelated networks of different directions that are usually united under this general concept. The main features of the darknet are:
- the network is closed from search engines and other bots;
- decentralization (there are no traditional servers and DNS, and data is transferred between random nodes);
- transmission of information via secure channels in encrypted form.
The last point is one of the most important. It is key to understanding the essence of the darknet. Take, for example, the same: this is a decentralized network, however, all data in it is transmitted unencrypted, as a result of which the provider can say exactly what you downloaded and even track where it came from!
The darknet works on principles similar to . All data passes through random network chains in encrypted form and can only be decrypted by the computer for which it is intended. Packet interception is, in principle, possible, but due to the resistance of cryptographic algorithms to hacking, it is practically impractical. Additionally, the interception process is complicated by the fact that information transmission routes are constantly changing.
According to their purpose, darknets can be divided into three types:
- Networks for anonymous surfing the Internet. Thanks to tunneling, they allow you to completely hide your real IP on the Internet.
- File sharing networks. They are decentralized file storage and file transfer channels in P2P mode.
- Full networks. They provide the user with a wide range of possibilities: website hosting, e-mail services, instant messages, etc.
The most interesting, in my opinion, are networks of the third type, which allow you not only to anonymously surf the Internet (it’s easier to use a VPN for this) or transfer files to each other, but also allow you to visit your own websites, hidden from ordinary users. That's what we'll talk about.
Tor
If you are not new to the Internet, then you have probably heard at least once about the Tor network (abbreviated as “The onion router”). It is usually mentioned as an alternative to various proxy servers for those who want to maintain their anonymity (simply hide their real external IP). However, in fact, Tor is a full-fledged darknet with its own sites and a fairly active user audience.
The principle of operation of Tor is very similar to VPN. When you connect to the network, a chain of random nodes is automatically created, through which all requests from you are transmitted in encrypted form to the web or onion resource you need (the so-called “onion” routing). The main difference from virtual networks is that Tor allows you to change the chain of intermediate nodes every time you reconnect:
Previously, Tor was delivered as a separate application, which had to be manually configured, and then also ensured that all necessary traffic was redirected through the created virtual gateways. Today everything is much simpler - the developers have released their own ready-to-use version of the Firefox browser called , in which the ability to anonymously visit the regular Internet and Tor resources are available out of the box:
In principle, Tor Browser does not require any additional settings. It automatically launches the Thor client in the background and connects to it using a plugin. If you wish, you can delve into the intricacies of setting up the client and increase the level of security or set Tor as the default gateway for all programs, but this is not required for general familiarization.
In addition to providing anonymity on the Internet by masking your external IP, Tor allows you to visit (and even create!) sites inaccessible to ordinary users with your own .onion domain name. This, in fact, is the “dark” side of Thor, since onion sites can exist directly on the computer of one of the anonymous users, contain any information, and at the same time they cannot be so easily closed without identifying the owner!
You can find the addresses of “onion” sites on the regular Internet (which darknet users call “clearnet” from the English “clear” - “clean, open”). I recommend starting your search with specialized link directories, like http://dirnxxdraygbifgc.onion/:
The topics of onion sites are very diverse and largely overlap with the topics of regular web resources. There are not only all kinds of pirated and illegal markets, but also quite decent social networks, libraries, online stores, etc.
Before you go to this or that darknet resource, keep in mind that here the risk of catching a virus is many times higher than on the regular Internet, so don’t let your guard down! And one more thing: in closed networks, such as Tor, you may well become victims of hackers who monitor traffic and can intercept transmitted data, so update connection chains more often.
As for the issue of anonymity in Tor in general, there is no 100% guarantee that no one will identify you if you want! This is directly written on the main page of the project. However, Tor allows you to successfully bypass various restrictions and IP bans. Let’s be honest, I once used this network to get votes for my sister’s photo in one of the Internet polls :)
Today, Tor is one of the most popular darknets. This is both good and bad... The good thing is that it is quite easy for anyone to log into the network. There are many such people, and accordingly the network speed is quite high.
The bad thing is that there are enough bad people (and intelligence agencies) who monitor Tor and can infect your PC or intercept your data! However, if you use the network wisely and do not compromise yourself again, then everything should be fine :)
I2P
If you need an almost perfectly secure network, then your choice is I2P (abbreviated as “Invisible Internet Project”). German quality (this is where this darknet “comes from”) guarantees us almost complete anonymity and provides us with a very wide range of opportunities, including:
- creating your own websites (eepsite with i2p domain name);
- use of torrents;
- email and chat services;
- blogging;
- work with cryptocurrencies, etc.
If we compare the principle of operation of this network with the Tor discussed above, we will see that here the level of security is an order of magnitude higher, since all data in encrypted form is transmitted through random chains of intermediate nodes. Moreover, the request coming from you goes through one tunnel, and is returned may be completely different (the so-called “garlic” routing), which makes data interception very, very labor-intensive:
To start using the I2P network, you need to download a client written in JAVA from the official website of the project (accordingly, you will also need an installed JAVA machine, which most users usually have) and install it. Upon successful installation, three shortcuts will appear on the desktop (for startup, restart and login to the console), and the “I2P Router Console” will open in the default browser (default address: http://127.0.0.1:7657/home):
In the start window of the console, you will see that you have many settings at your disposal, and at the bottom you will find a number of links to useful and interesting I2P resources. First, pay attention to the network status in the left sidebar. If it says “Blocked by the firewall” or describes a specific error, you should click on the inscription and fix the problem using the prompts (you can simply turn off the firewall).
If you see the network status "Ok", then everything is working as it should and you can start setting up the browser that you will use for surfing via I2P. I recommend choosing Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox for this purpose, as they have extensions that allow you to quickly apply proxy settings without having to reconfigure anything on the system.
Next I will describe using Chrome as an example, but the same thing is available for Firefox. We should install the FoxyProxy Standard plugin and in it (Options) set the address 127.0.0.1 and port 4444 as a proxy server:
After activating the newly created proxy, the extension icon will turn blue and we will be able to visit I2P resources. The only caveat is that if the proxy is enabled, we will not be able to use the Console, so to open it in FoxyProxy we will need to activate the “Disable FoxyProxy” item. In principle, the Console is not particularly needed. I recommend starting to get acquainted with the network from the official Wiki or one of the lists of links, like no.i2p.
If you wish, on the regular Internet you can find many links to various I2P resources, however, there are a couple of nuances here. The first is that a short link with .i2p at the end will usually be detected by your client as unknown. The fact is that to visit it you need to know its hash. You can get it using one of the jump services, however, not always...
The second caveat is that many sites on the network may become inaccessible even after being added to the Address Book. The problem here is that most sites are hosted on the computers of network users. If the computer is currently turned off, the site will not work.
I2P has two more negative aspects. Firstly, there is currently no normal gateway on the network for accessing the regular Internet from under a proxy, as, for example, in Tor. In principle, you can create an exit point, but not without shamanism (it’s easier to just disable the proxy if necessary): ) Secondly, due to the instability of the existence of nodes, the speed of the network leaves much to be desired.
Despite the fact that I2P is slower than Tor today, this network has much better potential! Firstly, if there are a large number of users, the speed will also increase (the same Tor in 2012 could barely crawl, loading other sites for several minutes!). Secondly, technically I2P is completely isolated from the Internet, which allows the same torrent trackers to be implemented on the network if they are banned on the Internet, without loss of functionality.
So, if you want, join the ranks of enthusiasts and use I2P. Create your own website (it’s free) or open a gateway to the Internet and, perhaps, one day you will get into the I2P “Hall of Fame”, and even earn a little money;)
Freenet
Another very popular darknet is Freenet. Like I2P, it is written using JAVA, but was originally developed as a peer-to-peer system for the free exchange of information, so it has a number of significant differences.
Freenet can operate in two modes: the so-called unsafe (data is transmitted and stored on random nodes) and secure (data passes only through the computers of trusted “friends”). In both cases, the essence of data transfer on the Freenet is that, like torrents, the information you requested in encrypted form is transmitted piece by piece through a number of network nodes. Then it is collected from these pieces into a single file and decrypted for you.
This distribution of the response makes it possible to almost completely secure data transmission from interception, but creates rather large delays in receiving information. For this reason, Freenet does not boast chat functions or support for servers with full PHP and MySQL, like I2P. For communication, it has only forums accessible through the Frost utility and anonymous email services.
Also, Freenet cannot be used as a gateway to access the Internet like Tor (it, like I2P, is completely isolated from the web). But it does not block access to the Internet, as the same I2P does and calmly hangs on port 8888 of the localhost (http://127.0.0.1:8888/ or http://localhost:8888/).
Installing Freenet is not difficult. It is enough to download a special client from the official website and install it without changing any parameters. If everything goes well, an icon with a running bunny will appear in the tray (client control panel), and your browser window will open in incognito mode with the Freenet initial setup wizard:
All settings here are in Russian, so understanding them will not be difficult. In short, we will need:
- Select the connection type (we choose insecure, since we don’t have “friends” yet).
- Set the storage size for data received from other network participants (at least 512 MB).
- Indicate whether you have restrictions on the volume of transmitted and received traffic.
- Set a data transfer rate limit (it is recommended to set exactly half the width of your bandwidth).
After these simple settings, we will be taken to the main start page:
This page contains a list of the main network resources, a search engine (though still in the form of an unstable beta version), a line for decrypting the key of a hash link to Freesite (as sites on the Freenet are called), as well as a number of tools for setting up the client and going to its various functional modules.
First of all, I recommend visiting the Linkageddon site directory, and then the Russian-language Freenet resource. Then, once you've gotten a little more comfortable, you can join the Frost forum or try creating your own site using the detailed description on the Freesite HOWTO.
The disadvantage of Freenet is that you can only create static sites without scripts and databases. However, due to the fact that your site (based on the torrent principle) is stored on hundreds and thousands of computers around the world, you don’t have to worry about its availability when you turn off your PC, as, for example, on an I2P network.
Freenet may be the best choice for people for whom real anonymity and stability are much more important than network speed. Freenet has the least number of different hackers and other near-criminal elements, but there are lovers of information wars and propaganda. Therefore, I recommend using Freenet only for people with an established psyche and a critical mindset :)
Comparison
We looked at the three most popular full-fledged darknets. I now propose to briefly summarize and summarize the data about them in the form of a table:
| Characteristic | Tor | I2P | Freenet |
| Operation speed | at the web level | slowly, but increases with time spent online | |
| Access to the Internet | + | +/- (you need to search or create a gateway) | - |
| Websites | any | any | only static |
| Anonymity | average if you change routes infrequently | high | highest |
| Functional | proxy for the Internet, creation of onion sites, torrent support, cryptocurrency support, forums and social networks | creation of i2p sites, torrent support, cryptocurrency support, chats, forums, email, anonymous hosting, code sharing services, blogging | freesite creation, forum, file sharing, email |
conclusions
Darknets, despite their mystery for ordinary users, do not represent anything supernatural. In principle, ordinary users have nothing to do there. For them, the darknet will look very dull :) But for people who care about their privacy and have something to hide, all kinds of closed networks can replace the usual Internet.
Although, the network is different, as we can see. If you need a quick way to mask your real external IP on the Internet and at the same time want to get access to all kinds of illegal stuff, then your choice is Tor. For those who are already tired of the usual Internet and want something new, I2P will become a real Klondike. Finally, those who want to anonymously express their position on any issue and do not want to be de-anonymized may well like Freenet.
Knowing about darknets and using them are two different things, so never consider this article as a call to go over to the “dark side” :) And spending time on closed networks will not make you a hacker. But, if you want to really surprise someone, I advise you to launch the GeekTyper service in front of the audience (preferably in full screen mode using F11) - an impression for the uninitiated is guaranteed :)
P.S. Permission is granted to freely copy and quote this article, provided that an open active link to the source is indicated and the authorship of Ruslan Tertyshny is preserved.
Darknet, Darknet, Darkweb and a dozen other synonyms are all names for the same thing, namely a collection of websites hidden from the eyes of ordinary Internet users. You won’t find them through your favorite search engine; this is a part of the network hidden from prying eyes. It has its own laws and rules that have nothing in common with generally accepted ones, and sometimes even violate them. I will try to tell you what the Darknet is and what any person who wants to get there needs to know.
What is the darknet
The modern Internet can be compared to a huge city. A kind of metropolis, where there are a lot of neighborhoods in which respectable citizens live - sites. A high level of culture reigns here, and order is especially vigilantly monitored. In addition, there are working-class neighborhoods where the culture is simpler, and people are not condemned for strong language and the distribution of not very decent materials. However, like in any other city, there is a place that is hidden from prying eyes, where its own rules and laws reign, which are not at all similar to the generally accepted ones, and sometimes even violate them. This is where the darkest things on the entire internet usually happen. So it is not at all by chance that this place was called Darknet, that is, dark network in Russian.
The darknet is the most closed section of the world wide web, where even search robots do not enter. An ordinary Internet user is also unlikely to get here by accident, although those who really need to get here will get where they need to go without much difficulty. The more Internet censorship develops, the more popular the darknet becomes and the more convenient the tools for working with it become. Content on the Darknet is intentionally not indexed. And if throughout the rest of the Internet site owners are trying to improve the site’s rating and increase its traffic, then in the dark segment they are trying to make the site as less noticeable as possible for users, especially for law enforcement agencies. For this, encryption, special software, as well as non-standard domain names and protocols are used. All this allows you to hide the IP addresses of the server on which the sites are located. That is, it remains possible for all users to visit the site, but it is practically impossible to find out who the owner of this site is.
The darknet is a private network in which connections between users occur using non-standard protocols and ports, which allows for a high degree of anonymity due to the hiding of IP addresses.
History of the darknet
The history of the darknet dates back to the 70s of the last century. It was when the prototype of the modern Internet was being developed - the ARPANet network. Already at that time, the military department decided to develop a network “for its own.” Almost until the beginning of the new century, only a limited number of people knew about this closed network. The first information about it appeared on the Internet when it became known about the invention of The Onion Router (TOR) system, which made it possible, through many proxy servers, to establish a connection that would be protected from eavesdropping and tracking, since all data is transmitted encrypted.
By the way, the Onion extension, which is used in Darknet network addresses, came from the name of the new technology. Despite the fact that the onion routing system is distributed freely and anyone can download absolutely legally necessary software, its protection and security are at the highest level. According to statistics, the number of Tor participants in the world is more than 10 million people.
How to get on the Darknet
Almost all Darknet sites use Tor technology to encrypt data and hide their affiliation. It allows the user to reliably maintain their anonymity online, hide their identity and change their location. The same thing happens with sites located on the Tor network. To get to such a site, you need to use the same Tor encryption tool in the form of a special browser. However, not all sites on the Darknet use the Tor network. There are also those who use alternative technologies, for example, I2P, although the principle of interaction between the user and the site remains the same. To visit the desired site, you must use the same encryption tool as the web page, hidden from prying eyes.
However, TOR technology is the most common on the dark side of the Internet, which means that if you want to get into the Darknet, you will need to download and install Tor Browser on your computer. This can be done easily from the official website. For more convenient use, it is better to choose the Russian version. Working with the TOP browser is almost identical to working with any other; you can understand the intricacies in just a couple of hours.
Search engines Torch or Fess
As I wrote above, the contents of the darknet are not indexed by conventional search engines. However, users of such sites are not left without a convenient service. The most well-known analogues of Google and Yandex on the Darknet are Torch, Grams or Fess. They are similar in their functional features. However, users note that Grams’ search results are very spammy. But Torch generally poorly sorts the sites it returns. The first in the search results may not be large sites, but completely random pages. But there are fewer complaints about Fess. True, here you also need to remember that in the dark part of the web, all the most interesting things are on forums, on non-indexed forums.
Godnotab catalogs and HD Wiki
The solution to this problem on the public Internet was found even before search engines appeared, and it is called link directories. This is a kind of selection of useful links from which the user selects what he needs. The most famous are HD Wiki for the English-speaking audience, as well as Godnotaba for those who do not know other languages besides Russian. However, when working with directories, you need to remember that some links will be broken due to the fact that site owners often change their location and domain name for even greater anonymity. Often these are sites that sell illegal goods and services.
Darknet currency
The main currency of the Darknet is the cryptocurrency Bitcoin. The popularity of this is due to the specifics of crypto money, payments for which cannot be tracked, as well as the people sending and receiving them. Although Bitcoin is far from the only currency circulating in the hidden part of the World Wide Web. Ethereum, which was invented by Vitalik Buterin, Zcash, Monero and a number of other cryptocurrencies are also actively used. In any case, if you are going to buy something on the Darknet, you will definitely need your crypto wallet.
Darknet sites
There are not many sites on the darknet. According to various estimates, about 4-8 thousand. Moreover, not all of them are related to the sale of illegal goods or illegal actions. In the dark part of the World Wide Web there are quite useful libraries, torrents and just forums where freedom of speech is not just a sound. In any case, I repeat, a random person will not just get here, and the one who comes does so consciously. I want to introduce you to the most popular resources in this part of the Internet.
Hydra
Hydra is a Russian-language anonymous trading platform, which, in essence, has become a social network for everyone associated with the drug business. More than 90% of the goods sold here are drugs. Anyone can register, just come up with a username and password. The site has a chat room where users can chat. There is a fee for posting sales messages, but this does not deter sellers of a specific product. Three sections are of greatest interest on the forum: Faculty - where the details and secrets of how the drug business works are revealed, Hyperlab - recipes for preparing all kinds of drugs, and Work - where those interested can find vacancies for sellers and small couriers.
Runion
This is the name of the most popular and educational Darknet forum in Russian. His specialty is defense and self-defense. The main sections of the forum are weapons, where books are presented, as well as instructions on weapons and their manufacture, tutorials on the production of explosives, lessons on self-defense and sabotage. In the part of the forum dedicated to safety precautions, there is a lot of material about methods of wiretapping, surveillance, their detection and protection. The section on information protection talks about encryption methods, special programs and utilities that allow you to anonymize your behavior on the network.
BuyBit
A Russian-language platform that allows you to buy or sell cryptocurrency. The only difference from ordinary exchangers, which are abundant in the open segment of the network, is increased anonymity. In particular, to carry out the exchange, you do not need authorization or confirmation of transactions and, moreover, you can pay for cryptocurrency from terminals. The site has good technical support, which helps solve all problematic issues.
Totet
The betting industry has reached the darknet. Totet is a Russian-language betting site where you can bet on certain events. The only difference from other betting sites is that bets are placed in bitcoins. This means that bets are placed anonymously and it is impossible to track the winner.
Yes, there is also a mirror of the largest social network on the darknet. Why is this necessary? The service is very popular in countries where Facebook is banned. For example, in China and other countries where the government restricts access to certain sites.
Alphabay
This is one of the largest markets on the dark side of the Internet. The site is completely English-language, and although registration on it is free, it is very complicated - you need to fill out two dozen fields. Trading on the site is carried out mainly for bitcoins, and the range of goods presented is perhaps the widest in the entire darknet. Here you can buy drugs, medications whose circulation is prohibited by law, personal data databases, anonymous bank cards, jewelry, weapons and much more.
Mail2Tor
An anonymous dark web mail server that is in great demand. True, the demand for it is mainly from very specific users - hackers, extortionists, spies, as well as spam services. The letter can only be sent to another address on the Tor network. In order to send letters to mailboxes on the open Internet segment, you have to use additional software, which, however, stops few people.
Secrets of the Darknet
Naturally, it is impossible to shed light on all the secrets of the darknet without exception in one article. The very word “dark” implies that all sites in this segment are hidden from outsiders and it is simply not possible to quickly get into the most hidden sections. They are not indexed by search engines even on the Darkweb itself, so this will require a personal approach, and sometimes an invitation from an already reputable member of the community.
In a word, everything is like in the criminal world, from which, as well as from its secrets, it is better to stay away. In addition, we should not forget that in this segment of the network the user is practically not protected by anything. Attackers can monitor them using built-in web cameras and microphones. Use the power of their computers for unauthorized mining or DDos attacks. And of course, it’s worth remembering that Tor technology was invented by the military, who can still use it for their own purposes.
The Darknet is a very interesting and equally dangerous thing, so it wouldn't be too much of an exaggeration to say that most people don't need it. In the open segment, you can easily find most of what is hidden on the darknet, unless, of course, you are looking for a job as a drug courier. In addition, there are a huge number of scams and deceptions on the darknet, and no one or anything guarantees user rights. And maintaining anonymity is also a big question, since otherwise no one would ever have found the creators of trading platforms selling illegal goods and services, and from time to time such high-profile arrests occur.
Hello again friends.
More and more often you can hear the word darknet on the Internet. What kind of animal this is, how to look inside and whether it is necessary to go there at all, I will consider in this article.
Dark web sites have a domain like .onion and you won’t be able to get there using the usual methods, but if you try.
What might be on the dark web?
Most often, these are illegal trading platforms where weapons and much more can be sold.
The favorite currency of users of the dark part of the network is bitcoins because they are more difficult to track.
There are forums where people exchange useful information on security and anonymity, and simply communicate on different topics. Hack materials, but I don’t recommend downloading programs there because those users have no honor and viruses can take your data which will be leaked on the same forums.
File-sharing networks and torrents are also present there, but for now you can get into them and without this they are not needed. Sometimes you can find sites with pornographic materials. Facebook is even present there, but it is more likely to be needed by residents of China because access to it is limited there.
How to get into the dark internet.
There is nothing complicated about this, all you need is to install the TOR browser, I already wrote about it in the article Browser for anonymous surfing TOR.
If you already have it installed, be sure to check that you have a new version of the browser installed.
This can be done by clicking on the onion icon in the upper left corner and selecting Check for tor browser update. This step is necessary for your own safety when surfing such sites.
Although you are under Tor encryption, it would be a good idea to use a VPN for reliability in order to avoid leakage of your data.
There are ways to enter such sites without a torus, but the possibility of leaking your IP and other data is so high, and it is better to avoid this and remain anonymous by all means.
Where to find darknet sites.
Alas, there are no search engines for the dark web; there are attempts to make them, but alas, they are useless. But there is such a service - “godnotaba”, so enter it into a search engine to find it.
There are many sites listed here and their status online or offline is monitored.
Most of them are trading platforms.
There are also sites that can be accessed only by invitation or recommendations.
Typically, such sites are hosted on a VPS because there are just two hosting options for such needs.
Is the dark internet necessary for the average user?
My opinion is no. not needed. Basically, within the network there are trading platforms for illegal goods such as weapons and drugs. Or offers of dark services - hacking and the like.
The currency that is used here is bitcoins because they are difficult to track.
Much of the information that is distributed on these forums can often be found on the regular Internet, or as they call clearnet, although there is less spam there.
I already wrote above about the dangers of downloading programs from there. There are cases when they allegedly give programs to novice hackers and there is malware inside them.
This is how personalities are sometimes hidden. But even this does not always save them, and set-ups are also not uncommon.
And with that, I say goodbye to you for today. Clean internet to you.
When reading the description of the Tor browser on software portals, we usually see characteristics only in a positive way. It is positioned as a mechanism for protecting rights on the Internet, a tool for bypassing the ubiquitous control of intelligence agencies, and a means of combating Internet censorship. A browser that offers the most reliable online anonymity mechanism completely free of charge. It is used to transmit information by journalists, famous people, anti-corruption activists, government officials, and other users who fear surveillance and seizure of information. And residents of totalitarian states can have contact with the outside world, in particular with democratic countries.
What are the dangers of Tor?
A well-known fact: Tor is banned in some countries, including Russia. And the reason for this is the browser’s creators ignoring Internet censorship. In the Russian Federation, violation of this ban is expected to block public Tor servers. There are no sanctions for ordinary users yet.
But owners of Tor system proxy servers may have problems related to liability not only for ignoring censorship. The enthusiasts who provide the end nodes of the onion network—the so-called exit nodes—are at greatest risk. The Tor system is built on the principle of transmitting encrypted information through several proxy servers. The IP address of the last proxy can be determined by intelligence agencies. And this has already happened in a number of countries, including Russia. A well-known fact: in April 2017, Russian citizen Yuri Bogatov was arrested for allegedly publishing calls for terrorism on the Internet and organizing mass riots. The defender presented irrefutable evidence that Bogatov himself did not make any publications, but his home computer was configured as an output node of the Tor network. However, Yuri still had to spend 3.5 months in a pre-trial detention center.
The preventive measure was subsequently changed to house arrest, but the case has not yet been closed. Enthusiasm is, of course, good, but it must be healthy.
For ordinary users who do not own Tor endpoints, the danger lies in the onion network itself. The Tor browser is a software environment for accessing the Darknet, the shadow side of the Internet. You cannot get here using Google or Yandex; shadow web resources will not open in a regular browser window, even using a direct link. You can only access the Darknet using Tor.
What is the Darknet
It exists in the form of an internal Tor network with the “.onion” domain, which is also hosting for all shady sites. Everything is confidential on the Darknet - site creators create them anonymously, users visit them anonymously. This is because the subject of discussion and transactions on shady sites are goods, services and content prohibited by the laws of many countries.
On Darknet sites, forums and communities you can purchase drugs, weapons, fake documents, counterfeit banknotes, sophisticated porn, stolen goods and other prohibited goods. Bitcoin currency is usually used to make transactions. Just as the Tor system allows the buyer and seller to remain anonymous, so with the help of Bitcoin it will not be possible to subsequently identify the sender and recipient of a money transfer.
Like the regular Internet, the Darknet has its own search engines, only intranet search engines.
But they search for information only from web resources available on the Internet. Some forums and communities of the .onion network are unindexed or completely closed. Only their own people or those who have received an invitation from such people can get to the latter. The darknet is a gathering place for hackers. It is here, and most often in closed communities, that cybercriminals communicate with each other, share experiences, and recruit newcomers. Naturally, piracy flourishes on the dark Internet. Here we will find genuine mirrors of well-known torrent trackers that are officially blocked in a number of countries.
The very bottom of the shadow Internet - human trafficking, ordering a killer, interactive rape, torture and murder of people
The darknet consists mostly of English-language sites, but there are also Russian-language ones. On the shadow Internet we will not find web resources with any kind of sophisticated or modern design; everything is done either in garish bad taste or in the style of poor minimalism.
We won’t see verbiage in articles about anything optimized for top search queries. Here the entire emphasis is shifted to the specifics and usefulness of information, as was once the case in the early days of the development of the regular Internet. The Darknet is a kind of excursion into the past of the regular Internet, but the excursion, alas, is unsafe.
Why is the Darknet dangerous?
Visiting the Darknet in itself is not a criminal offense. Any of us can visit one or another shady site out of curiosity. It's like walking through dangerous areas of the city. The danger lies in the possible consequences of such a walk, regardless of whether we commit an illegal act or not. Thus, a potential threat hangs over every user of the shadow Internet: fraud, scams and hacking flourish here.
If we are talking about illegal actions, then it is naive to believe that the existence of the shadow Internet within the Tor network is a guarantee of the safety of illegal transactions. In addition to the anonymity mechanism offered by the browser, there are a lot of nuances - from its correct configuration for the Darknet to the method of receiving purchased products.
On the Darknet, intelligence agencies cannot identify criminals in the same way as on the regular Internet - through filtering information on the public network. But nothing prevents them from acting according to the test purchase scheme. Intelligence officers can monitor the shadow Internet and, under the guise of buyers/sellers, negotiate the purchase/sale of prohibited goods. And when planning the delivery of prohibited goods across the border, do not forget about such a structure as the customs service.
Here are a few facts from the judicial practice of the Russian Federation in cases in which Tor appears as an instrument for committing a crime
Judicial practice of the Russian Federation in “Darknet” cases
By the verdict of the Leninsky Court of Cheboksary in July 2017, a Russian received a 4-year suspended sentence for purchasing narcotic drugs on one of the Darknet sites. The package of drugs in the form of a registered letter was sent by a seller from Germany, but at customs in Vnukovo it was opened and recorded. The parcel was sent to Cheboksary accompanied by employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Since the letter went from Germany to Russia, drug smuggling appears as an illegal act in the verdict.
Note: Drugs on the dark internet can be ordered in "stash" form, such as a Coca-Cola bottle. Such props will deceive us humans, but not our four-legged friends. Trained customs dogs search for drugs at the border.
A student from Russia was sentenced to serve 2.6 years in a maximum security colony by the Leninsky Court in Voronezh, handed down in August 2017. The student organized a trading platform for selling drugs on the Darknet and supplied them through hiding places.
A drug courier, who took up such a “position” in one of the stores of the shadow network, in January 2017 received 6 years in a high-security penal colony by the verdict of the Kalininsky court in Chelyabinsk.
August, 2016, the Norilsk City Court of the Krasnoyarsk Territory sentences the defendant in the case of firearms smuggling. The defendant purchased prohibited goods on the Darknet and even received them by parcel from Europe to his postal address. But during operational search activities, the weapon was discovered by FSB officers. The result is 4.3 years in a general regime penal colony and a huge fine.
To sum it up...
Drugs and weapons are the most common categories of cases involving the Darknet that reach the sentencing stage. That’s why law enforcement agencies have a mechanism for generating evidence in this category of cases, honed over the years. And it makes no difference to them how communications were carried out during the commission of a crime - through the Tor browser or through word of mouth. All these conventions and details are usually revealed in a “confession.”
13-02-2016
"DarkNet" is a dark layer of the Internet, which can only be connected through a special browser - Tor. The darknet is characterized by a higher degree of anonymity, therefore it is where communities engaged in illegal activities are concentrated - trafficking in weapons, drugs and bank cards. But there are also legal projects - libraries, . People choose this network for the sake of freedom of speech and privacy.
How to enter the Darknet
It's quite simple. Necessary download Tor browser from the official website. It is highly not recommended to download Tor from other resources, because... such a distribution may contain Trojans that can declassify your presence on the network. Next you need install browser.When you first log in, you need to choose from two options: simply connect or configure network settings. If you want to use a browser to access a blocked site, for example rutracker.org, then select "connect". If you need anonymity, then you need the "customize" option. Tor works in the same way as regular browsers, but in a more complex way, which negatively affects page loading speed. With its help, you can visit both hidden and regular sites. Make sure that it is configured correctly, follow the link - https://check.torproject.org/?lang=ru.
How the Tor Browser works
The essence of the work is reflected in the logo - the onion. Just like her, the connection consists of layers - a chain of proxies. Information passes through 3 randomly selected network nodes. On the client side, before sending the packet, sequential encryption occurs for each of the nodes.
Darknet sites
You can find links to popular sites on the Russian darknet at godnotaba.top. The project was created for informational purposes. All transactions on prohibited sites of the Tor network are illegal and prosecuted by law. The project is for informational purposes only and is intended for a general understanding of the TOR network.
Websites on the Tor network are located in the domain zone .onion. Below is a list of some resources:
not Evil - search engine on the Tor network
TORCH - another search engine
Flibusta - book library
Hidden Answers - anonymous question and answer service
rutrackerripnext.onion - Mirror rutracker.org
rutorc6mqdinc4cz.onion - Mirror rutor.info
If you are confused by the address hss3uro2hsxfogfq.onion, then you should note that almost all sites on this network look similar.
There is also a community about “Onionland” on reddit. You can also find all kinds of links there.
Safety
It should be noted that using the Tor browser does not guarantee the anonymity of your actions. Information and offers found on the Internet may be false. Beware of scammers!
