Definition:

The dark web is a section of the internet that has been purposefully concealed and is unreachable through regular web browsers. It is a subset of the deep web, which comprises all areas of the internet that are not indexed by search engines. The dark web is purposefully concealed and is often associated with anonymity and privacy. To reach the black web, people utilize software such as Tor (The Onion Router). While the dark web is not unlawful in and of itself, it is frequently associated with illegal activity due to the anonymity it affords. It’s important to remember that not all dark web content is illegal; there are also forums, blogs, and businesses that encourage anonymity for a variety of reasons.

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A short glimpse:

According to a 2019 study titled “Into the Web of Profit,” which was conducted by Dr. Michael McGuires at the University of Surrey, things have become worse. Since 2016, there have been 20% more dark web listings that could be harmful to a firm. Sixty percent of all listings (excluding those offering drugs) have the potential to harm businesses.

Darknet markets:

Credit card details, narcotics of all types, firearms, phony money, hacked Netflix accounts, stolen membership passwords, and software for breaking into other people’s computers can all be acquired. Purchase the login information for a $50,000 Bank of America account, prepaid debit cards, fake $20 bills, or a “lifetime” premium Netflix account. Hiring hackers to perform computer assaults on your behalf is an option.

Image source Google: Credit goes to Medium

Deep web vs. dark web: What’s the difference?

Deep web:

Although the terms are frequently used interchangeably, they relate to distinct areas of the internet.

The deep web encompasses all areas of the internet that are not indexed by conventional search engines. This includes a large amount of data that is inaccessible via normal web browsers.
Databases, password-protected websites, private email accounts, and other dynamically generated content are examples of deep web content.

Dark Web:

It is a small portion of the deep web that is purposely hidden and requires special technologies, such as the Tor browser, to access.
While not all content on the dark web is prohibited, it has a reputation for hosting activities that favor anonymity, such as illegal marketplaces, hacking services, and other services.

Dark web tools and services & nbsp:

The Into the Web of Profit report identified 12 categories of tools or services that could present a risk in the form of a network breach or data compromise:

Infection or attacks, including   malware, distributed denial of service (DDoS) and   botnets
Access, including remote access Trojans (RATs),  keyloggers& nbsp; and exploits
Espionage, including services, customization, and targeting
Support services such as tutorials
Credentials
Phishing
Refunds
Customer data
Operational data
Financial data
Intellectual property/trade secrets
Other emerging threats

Dark web browser:

All this activity, this vision of a bustling marketplace, might make you think that navigating the dark web is easy. It isn’t. The place is as messy and chaotic as you would expect when everyone is anonymous, and a substantial minority are out to scam others.&nbsp.

Dark web search engine:

Dark web search engines exist, but even the best are challenged to keep up with the constantly shifting landscape. The experience is reminiscent of searching the web in the late 1990s. Even one of the best search engines called   Grams, returns results that are repetitive and often irrelevant to the query. Link lists like   The Hidden Wiki   are another option, but even indices also return a frustrating number of timed-out connections and  404 errors.

Dark web websites:

Dark web websites   look pretty much like any other site, but there are important differences. One is the naming structure. Instead of ending in .com or .co, dark web websites end in .onion. That’s “a special-use top-level domain suffix designating an anonymous hidden service reachable via the Tor network,”  according to Wikipedia. Browsers with the appropriate proxy can reach these sites, but others can’t.

Dark web websites also use a scrambled naming structure that creates URLs that are often impossible to remember. For example, a popular commerce site called & nbsp; Dream Market   goes by the unintelligible address of “eajwlvm3z2lcca76.onion.”

Many dark websites are set up by scammers, who constantly move around to avoid the wrath of their victims. Even commerce sites that may have existed for a year or more can suddenly disappear if the owners decide to cash in and flee with the escrow money they’re holding on behalf of customers.

What is sold on the Dark Web?

The dark web has flourished thanks to & nbsp; bitcoin, the crypto-currency that enables two parties to conduct a trusted transaction without knowing each other’s identity. “Bitcoin has been a major factor in the growth of the dark web, and the dark web has been a big factor in the growth of Bitcoin,” says Tiquet.

Nearly all dark web commerce sites conduct transactions in Bitcoin or some variant, but that doesn’t mean it’s safe to do business there. The inherent anonymity of the place attracts scammers and thieves, but what do you expect when buying guns or drugs is your objective?

Dark web commerce sites have the same features as any e-retail operation, including ratings/reviews, shopping carts and forums, but there are important differences. One is quality control. When both buyers and sellers are anonymous, the credibility of any ratings system is dubious. Ratings are easily manipulated, and even sellers with long track records have been known to suddenly disappear with their customers’ crypto-coins, only to set up shop later under a different alias.

Most e-commerce providers offer some kind of escrow service that keeps customer funds on hold until the product has been delivered. However, in the event of a dispute don’t expect service with a smile. It’s pretty much up to the buyer and the seller to duke it out. Every communication is encrypted, so even the simplest transaction requires a nbsp; PGP key.

Even completing a transaction is no guarantee that the goods will arrive. Many need to cross international borders, and customs officials are cracking down on suspicious packages. The dark web news site & nbsp; Deep.Dot. Web & nbsp; teems with stories of buyers who have been arrested or jailed for attempted purchases.

As in the real world, the price you pay for stolen data fluctuates as the market changes. According to Privacy Affair’s & nbsp; Dark Web Price Index 2021, these are the most current prices for some of the data and services commonly traded over the dark web.

Effect in India:

Despite numerous attempts to reach out, News18 received no response from the ICMR DG as of October 28, making it imperative for further investigation and clarifications.

This data breach has raised concerns about foreign actors’ potential involvement, and top officials from various agencies and ministries are already addressing the situation. Remedial actions are underway, and a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) has been implemented to mitigate the damage.

The & nbsp; Security report & nbsp; pointed out that the dataset offered by the threat actor pwn0001 contained personally identifiable information (PII) records, encompassing sensitive details such as names, father’s names, phone numbers, passport numbers, Aadhaar numbers, ages, genders, addresses, districts, pin codes, and states.

Home Technology News Massive Dark Web Data Leak Exposes India To Digital Identity Theft And Financial Scams, Warns Security.

Massive dark web data leak exposes India to digital identity theft and financial scams, warns Security.

A cybersecurity and intelligence report claims personal details of 81.5 crore citizens are on sale on the dark web. According to a News18 exclusive report, the ‘threat actor’ claimed the data — extracted from the COVID-19.

On October 15, Resecurity HUNTER issued a concerning blog post, stating that an unidentified threat actor, operating under the alias ‘pwn0001,’ advertised the sale of 815 million “Indian Citizen Aadhaar and Passport” records on Breach Forums. The offer, posted on October 9, came with a price tag of $80,000 for the entire dataset.

Awareness Month: Experts emphasize urgent action as data breaches soar

The ‘threat actor’  claimed that this data & nbsp; was derived from COVID-19 test records of Indian citizens and allegedly sourced from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). It’s noteworthy that ICMR has been subjected to numerous cyber-attack attempts since February, with over 6,000 incidents reported last year. Central agencies and the council were well aware of these threats and had urged ICMR to take remedial actions to safeguard the data. Despite numerous attempts to reach out, News18 received no response from the ICMR DG as of October 28, making it imperative for further investigation and clarifications.

Despite numerous attempts to reach out, News18 received no response from the ICMR DG as of October 28, making it imperative for further investigation and clarifications.

However, pwn0001 declined to reveal the source of this data, leaving the cause of the breach to speculation. Concurrently, pwn0001 shared spreadsheets containing four large leak samples with fragments of UID data as proof. One of the leaked samples contains 100,000 records of PII related to Indian residents. In this sample leak, HUNTER analysts identified valid Aadhaar Card IDs, which were corroborated via a government portal that provides a “Verify Aadhaar” feature. This feature allows people to validate the authenticity of Aadhaar credentials,” it added.

Resecurity also highlighted another threat actor going by the alias ‘Lucius’ that posted on August 30 a thread on Breach Forums promoting a 1.8 terabyte data leak impacting an unnamed “India internal law enforcement organization.”

The report goes on to say the data set contained an even more extensive array of PII data than pwn0001’s. Beyond Aadhaar IDs, Lucius’ leak contained Voter IDs and driving license records.

According to Resecurity, the threat actor may be referencing law enforcement to plant a red herring and conceal the real intrusion vector that enabled them to acquire the data, or/and it may just be trying to generate hype around their offering. Highlighting the first breach scenario, HUNTER analysts identified multiple records with the signature “PREPAID.” They said the signature may be related to the leak from one of the telecommunication carriers that offer pre-paid SIM cards and similar services using such information for KYC (Know Your Customer).

“These service offerings also entail the collection of PII data to validate customers prior to the activation of mobile services,” it added.

Conclusion:

In summary, the deep web is a broader phrase that covers any online information that is not indexed by search engines, but the dark web is a smaller, purposefully concealed subset of the deep web that is generally linked with privacy and anonymity, and often involves illicit activity.

Source Credit: Darren Guccione.

Dark web vs Deep web!! Is this legal??

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