Watch our cyber team share their key insights from their investigations into the biggest dark web trends in 2022. They use pseudonymous wallets, privacy coins (like Monero), mixers, chain-hopping, and non-KYC platforms to obscure transaction trails. All site status information is automatically monitored and updated every N minutes/hours.
Darknet marketplaces like to exist on the dark web because it offers a service that the regular internet, or more accurately, the “surface web,” does not. In 2019, the FBI started its investigation into Genesis Market and enlisted other government agencies and law enforcement organizations across the world, working towards the market’s closure on April 4, 2023. As part of the investigation, the Dutch National Police took the lead on cybercrime prevention, and Van Well shared his insight on the sophistication of the fraud shop’s operation.
Money Laundering
BidenCash was launched in 2022, and since it became a hot spot for cybercriminals to sell and buy illegal things, including stolen card information and personal data. However, in June 2025, BidenCash’s relevant domains (around 145) were seized by the US Department of Justice. The site gives out free samples of the stolen data every now and then to gain more customers. With its fast rise to fame and focus on money fraud, it’s no surprise that cybersecurity experts are keeping a very close eye on this one. In one particularly devastating case, a man lost his entire $80,000 pension.
Most Popular
From items like drugs, fake ID cards, and hacked bank accounts to more complex offerings like human trafficking, these sites carry all the illegal activities you can think of. Discover everything about what a darknet market is, top marketplaces, security threats on them, and learn how to protect your data online. Customer reviews found on the Abacus site indicate that some of its American vendors sell drug products laced with fentanyl.
- Kraken Market also captured the largest share of transfers potentially sent for the purpose of obfuscating funds, as well as buying illegal products.
- Chainalysis cautioned that surviving marketplaces are still making massive profits.
- It supports operations in multiple languages and operates on both clearnet and Tor.
- Maintaining persistent access and knowledge of this darknet landscape is critical to provide continuous coverage of data from the dark web.
- Founded by Ross William Ulbricht in 2011, Silk Road quickly established itself as the go-to destination for illegal items, particularly illegal drugs.
Torzon Market
This could stop the flow of stolen data through the supply chain and disrupt the underground economy that profits from your personal data. Darknet or dark web marketplaces are a hidden part of the internet that surface web users can’t access; they can only be accessed with special anonymity software called Tor. Many people (mostly criminals) use these sites to perform illegal transactions such as selling banned goods and services. One fraud shop that provided services like these, Genesis Market, saw its end last April after a coordinated, international law enforcement effort called Operation Cookie Monster closed it down, and OFAC sanctioned it.
Tor2door Market
- It is considered very secure thanks to strict user validations and transparent payment and vendor review procedures.
- Unlike BTC, which relies on a transparent public ledger, Monero offers built-in privacy features such as ring signatures, stealth addresses, and confidential transactions, making it nearly impossible to trace sender and receiver identities.
- One of the most common is the exit scam, where a marketplace suddenly disappears and takes everyone’s money with it.
- It has a search option to let you find local and international products and services on the dark web.
- Today’s sanctions designation is OFAC’s first action as a member of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)-led interagency Joint Criminal Opioid and Darknet Enforcement (JCODE) Team.
Unfortunately, the dark web hosts not only explicit but also deeply illegal and disturbing content. The markets often share materials related to child exploitation, pornography, and non-consensual recordings, all of which are serious crimes that inflict lasting harm on real-life victims. Such content fuels a dangerous cycle of abuse, violence, and exploitation. Plus, there’s a thorough vetting process for new buyers and sellers to keep the community more secure.
The Marketplace As An Arsenal
Though there are other browsers with similar functionality, Deep Web statistics point to Tor as the most popular — with 5.92 million new downloads worldwide in 2023’s third quarter. Notably, Abacus explicitly forbids highly dangerous goods, including weapons, explosives, and exploitative material, which has helped maintain a relatively favorable reputation among its user base. Chainalysis also noted that some markets are openly advertising their wares in Russia, with giant 3D billboards (Kraken Market) and QR codes on subway trains (Mega Darknet Market).
Malware Sales
In many countries, strict laws limit who can legally buy, own, or carry firearms. So when someone like a private buyer or criminal group can’t pass the background checks or get the right permits, they usually turn to the dark web to sidestep the rules and get armed without drawing attention. Surprisingly, most guns on the darknet actually start as legal products. The UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime) maintains that almost all firearms are originally manufactured through legal means. One notable fact is that the site has changed its domain twice since its formation.
Although some of these markets prohibit certain extreme content such as violence or exploitation, most operate with very few rules beyond ensuring the security and anonymity of their users. Crypto drainers,a category of malicious software engineered for the swift and automated withdrawalof funds from legitimate crypto wallets to malicious actors’ wallets, aregaining momentum among crypto scammers. A 10-month investigation following the closure of the dark web’s largest illegal marketplace, DarkMarket, has resulted in the arrest of 150 suspected drug vendors and buyers. These changes were scheduled to be released with version 0.3.5.x-final, but the actual release date of that update is unclear and no due date specified. In July, Tor Browser began displaying a “deprecated soon” warning message every time a v2 onion service was accessed.
Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Major drug markets in the Dark Web are now worth around $315 million annually according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Scammed funds are also increasingly moving through decentralized protocols. The increased use of DeFi comes amid tight regulations on centralized exchanges.
In that sense, the history of the Deep Web is as old as the history of the internet. But if we focus solely on the Dark Web, stats show its history dates back to 2000, when Ian Clarke released Freenet, his thesis project. A student at the University of Edinburgh, Clarke aimed to create a system of data storage and retrieval that would be decentralized, thus allowing for anonymous file sharing and communication.
Part of the operation to close the Monopoly marketplace, the arrests shed light on some scary facts about the Dark Web. Namely, during the operation, the authorities seized $53.4 million in cash and cryptocurrency, 117 firearms, and 850 kg (1,874 pounds) of illegal drugs. The drugs included 258 kg (568.8 pounds) of amphetamines, 43 kg (94.8 pounds) each of MDMA and cocaine, and another 10 kg (22 pounds) of LSD and ecstasy pills. The marketplace’s founder, a man with dual Croatian-Serbian citizenship, was previously arrested and extradited to the US. We’ve heard a lot about the Dark Web in recent years — but how much do we really know about this mysterious part of the internet? In this overview of recent Dark Web statistics, we’ll start by examining the darknet in the context of the World Wide Web.
