The World Wide Web (or the internet as it’s more commonly known) is split into 3 sections:
The Open Web
Sometimes called the Surface Web or Clear Web, these are the websites you most likely visit every day, that are indexed and can be found via a search engine. These sites are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to internet content, less than 5% of the total.
The Deep Web
Commonly mistaken for the Dark Web, this is a non-indexed section of the internet – things like email accounts, online banking, medical information, legal files, cloud storage; the deep web consists of databases or intranets behind paywall, authentication or login screens that can’t be found readily by searching. It hosts an estimated 96% – 99% of the content on the internet.
The Dark Web
This is technically a part of the Deep Web but requires a specific anonymising private browser for access. It is hidden on purpose, for both legal and illegal reasons. It can be used to work around government censorship but is most commonly associated with illicit activity. It’s about 5% of the Deep Web in size, but harder to measure due to the implicit nature of being hidden.
Which browser is used for the Dark Web?
Originally developed in the 1990s for American intelligence communications, the Tor (The Onion Router) browser encrypts traffic via multiple servers to provide anonymity to its users. This is called Onion Routing, due to the many layers of encryption involved. You can recognise a dark web website as it will consist of a mix of random letters and numbers and instead of .com or .co.uk at the end, it will have .onion. Other browsers are available, such as the Invisible Internet Project (I2P), Tor is just the most common.
What is the dark web like?
As you’d perhaps expect from an unregulated part of the internet, the user interface for the dark web, also called the darknet, is not the easiest to manoeuvre around and looks rather dated. There are limited search engines available and as it’s non-indexed, they don’t work particularly well. Many results lead to page-not-found errors as sites are removed or moved elsewhere. You need to know the URL of the page you’re looking for, but there are directory sites that list links in categories that might help you find it.
What can you find on the dark web?
For those who live in countries where the internet is heavily restricted by the government, users can find dark web versions of popular websites such as the BBC. There are equivalent social media platforms too.
Due to the increase in privacy, many people use the dark web for freedom of speech to publish views they wouldn’t be able to elsewhere. Whistle-blowers and victims of abuse are two examples who might need to use the dark web for their own safety.
Malware is everywhere on the dark web – it’s available for purchase by fraudsters to use in their cyber attacks, such as RaaS type-deals, or it’s deployed waiting to find its way into a dark web user’s hands infecting their device. There’s less protection on the dark web so you’re more likely to be exposed to ransomware, phishing scams, webcam hackers, or key stroke loggers.
Otherwise, expect to find illicit services such as hire-a-hitman, sex trafficking, pirate content, illegal pornography, drugs, chemical and weapon marketplaces. You can also purchase login credentials for email or social media profiles, and other information that can be used for identity theft or other cybercrimes. Dark web financial transactions are usually done using cryptocurrency like bitcoins.
A word of warning
Using specialist software, the police and government monitor the dark web regularly, and are able to identify and mark individuals for surveillance, even though it’s supposedly anonymous. The dark web and the Tor browser aren’t actually illegal to access and use, but if you use either for something that could be considered illegal, even accidentally, you’d potentially be in big trouble. It’s best to be safe than sorry and avoid it, no matter how curious you are.
