Australia is an important player on the global black market for drugs, with one in three listings for methamphetamine and Codeine, an opioid pain medicine, coming from Australia. One in four listings for heroin and the psychedelic DMT (N,N-Dimethyltryptamine) are from Australia, as are 37 per cent of all listings of Oxycodone, another opioid pain medication. Stimulants — including methamphetamines, cocaine and speed — were the most readily available class of drugs, with 56 sellers offering 2060 listings.
Data Availability
The founder of Silk Road, who went by the sobriquet “Dread Pirate Roberts”, was charged, tried and convicted on charges including money laundering, conspiracy to traffic narcotics and computer hacking. The US District Court in Manhattan sentenced him to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole and ordered him to forfeited 183 million dollars, being the proceeds of his crimes. “Many markets, particularly markets that want to stay operational, will often ban vendors from selling those sorts of products, just like they do with child exploitation materials.” In April 2019 they found three new markets – Agartha, Dream Alt and Samsara – were added after Wall Street and Valhalla were seized by law enforcement and Dream voluntarily closed. The markets, which sell a variety of contraband including illicit drugs, included Apollon, Empire, Dream, Nightmare, Tochka (aka Point), Berlusconi, Valhalla (aka Silkitie) and Wall Street. While the darknet is present globally, Australia has been a key player in the darknet industry.
Safer Drug Supply On The Dark Web? It’s Complicated, Researchers Find
The researchers focused on the five most common drugs sent in for testing—MDMA, cocaine, amphetamine, methamphetamine and LSD—to ensure that there would be enough data points to produce reliable results in each case. They only included samples that were purchased in-person or on dark-web cryptomarkets, excluding samples that participants simply stated were from “the internet.” In total, 62,596 drug samples met these criteria. Currently, CanTEST stands as Australia’s sole drug checking service, with Queensland set to introduce its own services and Victoria considering similar measures.
The Invisible Majority: People Whose Drug Use Is Not Problematic
Despite their ubiquity, online drug markets have distinct geographical hubs, shaped by regional roles in the global trade. Most dark web drug shipments originate from the US and Northern and Western Europe, as well as Russia. Russia also recorded the highest proportion (85.7%) of drug users purchasing on the darknet in 2022, and a drug trafficking average of 5.75 in the 2023 Global Organized Crime Index.
Dangers Of Buying Drugs On The Dark Web
The centre also found that the internet had made more conventional illicit substances, such as cannabis and MDMA, easier to buy. Analysis of illegal drugs purchased online revealed that 35% did not match their advertised substances, underscoring the critical need for increased local drug testing services in Australia to mitigate risks and prevent overdoses. Why are these markets still seen as enticing places to sell drugs, despite the risks?
Dark Web Marketplaces
“Drug checking services never tell consumers that their drugs are ‘safe’ as no drug use can be 100% safe. “However, we know through research on darknet market takedown operations that this ecosystem is quick to adapt to removal of markets. Called “brilliant,” “fantastic,” and “spot on” by scientists and researchers, our acclaimed StudyFinds Analysis articles are created using an exclusive AI-based model with complete human oversight by the StudyFinds Editorial Team. For these articles, we use an unparalleled LLM process across multiple systems to analyze entire journal papers, extract data, and create accurate, accessible content.
For example, recent investigations have found that the synthetic psychedelic drug 2C-B has become more prevalent in rural areas of Scotland due to its availability on the dark web. Similarly, methamphetamine use has surged in rural American areas, with rates now surpassing those in urban areas, likely due in part to easier access through online platforms. Aggressive online marketing by sellers also boosts awareness of, and accessibility to, drugs in areas where exposure to them is limited offline or among consumers who may not have encountered these substances through traditional channels. As discussed, there is lack of information about trends in these types of drug market, and despite the increasingly panicked tone of some recent media coverage a major question is whether cryptomarket research can shine a light on the reality of usage of these products. At the most general level, it is hoped that this work can further demonstrate that, with the appropriate limitations and nuances being included, cryptomarket digital trace analysis can be used as resource to understand wider trends in drug usage rates. Most studies have identified procurement via the internet as being endorsed by fewer than 10% of nonmedical prescription drug users (McCabe et al., 2018; Novak et al., 2016).
News Centre
- The darknets which constitute the dark web include small peer-to-peer networks, as well as large, popular networks like Tor, Freenet, and I2P, which are operated by public organizations and individuals.
- A review of dark web marketplaces yielded hundreds of results for Australian-based operators that sell a variety of illicit substances almost exclusively to locals.
- Cryptomarkets and cryptomarket research have come a long way in a short period time, aided by large scale analysable datasets, but these come with a risk.
- Stimulants — including methamphetamines, cocaine and speed — were the most readily available class of drugs, with 56 sellers offering 2060 listings.
There are examples of Australian sellers being caught and prosecuted by authorities. “As the market gets bigger and more saturated, there’s even less need to buy from international dealers,” he said. Long-term dark web sellers boast of their shipping techniques and detection-free track records.
The second and third consignments contained a total of 60g of MDMA, 25g of ketamine, 15g of meth and 14g of heroin. In a statement, the Australian Federal Police says it is aware of illicit trading on the dark web and is working with its partners to combat all forms of technology-enabled crime. A seemingly innocent photo of a real estate listing has helped sleuths solve a mystery laying dormant for over 80 years. “Digital analysts also work closely with investigators to address these growing concerns,” she said. NDARC research from last year found that only 7 per cent of existing ecstasy users had used the internet for their most recent purchase, preferring instead to buy from friends and dealers. Prospective customers can only buy the stock with bitcoin, a virtual currency that makes transactions near impossible to track.
“The annual Global Drugs Survey, the biggest of its type in the world, shows that the number of people who purchase drugs online continues to go up. One seller who has operated on a major marketplace since January has a positive feedback rating of 99 per cent. They promote their “high quality product, consistency, competitive low prices” and even “accepting specific custom orders”. One local operator that news.com.au and Storyful found proudly proclaimed that they “haven’t had a package intercepted ever” and explained that his drugs were vacuum sealed, alcohol rubbed and cleverly disguised.
Australian Users On The Darknet Markets
The picture is less clear in mainland Europe with high sales levels reported in unexpected Central and Northern European countries. There is evidence of a move towards the more potent sedative alprazolam – already implicated as a source of problematic NMPDU in the USA – in Australia and the UK. Sales of drugs such as antidepressants, antipsychotics, mood stabilisers and antidementia drugs – all drugs with limited abuse potential – were negligible, indicating minimal levels of online cryptomarket procurement for self-medicating mental health problems.
But in the domestic mail system, Dr Martin said there was no real risk to either sellers or buyers. Analysis by news.com.au and Storyful of one marketplace, regarded as the biggest dark web operator in the world, found more than 60 Australian listings for ketamine, much of it advertised as being imported from India, a major producer of the dissociative. Street drugs like cocaine, MDMA, ecstasy and marijuana were readily available, as were highly addictive substances like crystal methamphetamine and heroin. According to the latest Index, North America’s average drug trade score rose by 0.13 points, while the scores for Northern Europe and Western Europe increased by 0.31 and 0.27, respectively.
