Begun as part of efforts to preserve online anonymity and privacy, Freenet, Tor and the Invisible Internet Project are, like the rest of the web, home to both crime and free expression.
Brett Johnson tears up when he mentions the FBI special agent who helped him quit online fraud.
The darknet, like the open internet, is not immune from illegal activity. But many darknet users are there in search of ‘hacker ethics’ values such as privacy and free speech.
A geographical map depicting hotbeds of dark web activity related to illegal products. Larger circles indicate more activity.
Christian Mattmann
As governments look to new ways to step up surveillance, hackers find new ways to subvert it. Is there a way to end this cat and mouse game, described as a crypto-war?
Are online black markets this direct?
Hands exchanging money via shutterstock.com
Criminals have always done their best to use new technology to their advantage and the rapid development of new digital technologies and online markets has provided the criminal entrepreneur with as much…
You won’t believe dramatic new portrayal of Silk Road… but you should.
Johan.V./Flickr
Alex Oates’ debut Fringe play traces the journey of 19-year-old Geordie lad Bruce, as he begins dealing cocaine via the illicit online marketplace Silk Road. Under the guise of a coming of age drama, the…
In a stark contrast to the conventional drug trade, some users in online marketplaces offer full or partial refunds for drugs that are intercepted by customs.
AAP/Customs
In October 2013, US authorities shut down Silk Road, the world’s largest cryptomarket. At the time, prosecutors claimed that the closure of the so-called “eBay of illicit drugs” represented the beginning…
After 25 years, it’s getting a bit dusty in there.
Arrqh
Most people would agree with the principle that good foundations are essential to any structure that is intended to last. But what if when you started building, you didn’t envisage how large, complex or…
The worrying developments in UK internet freedom over the last year make predictions for 2014 gloomy to say the least. Censorship now affects us all, so we should be thinking about it. And it’s not politically…