Deep Water Exploration of the Darkest Recesses of the Internet
                     Deep Water Exploration of the Darkest Recesses of the Internet 
 
In the collective mind, the Darknet is the seat of the worst criminal activity, where 
anything can be bought and sold. But the Darknet also offers journalists and 
activists a field of struggle, on condition of anonymity, for the freedom to inform 
and the right to the protection of private life. 
 
The Darknet covers different concepts and technologies that should be 
differentiated. I suggest you take a guided tour... To start the tour, it is first of all 
necessary to agree on a certain number of definitions. 
 
What is the Darknet? 
First of all the Darknet, it is a superimposed network infrastructure layer 
accessible only by means of specific software and configurations or on 
authorization, often via non-standard ports and communication protocols. On the 
Darknet, we find the Dark web: this is the content available on the Darknet. We 
must then differentiate the deep web from the dark web. The deep web is a part 
of the World Wide Web, the contents of which are not indexed by standard 
search engines for various reasons. 
 
Finally, Darknet differs from Clearnet, namely unencrypted content that does not 
depend on Darknet. Anonymity is not very well preserved since most websites 
identify their visitors by their IP address. 
 
 
 
What do we find there? 
You can find just about anything you're looking for. Especially what is illegal? The 
Darknet is a dangerous place, seat of illicit or underground activities... 
 
It is characterized by the presence of online marketplaces where one can buy and 
sell different types of goods and digital resources in exchange for bitcoins and 
other cryptocurrencies. Marketplaces are currently multiplying on Clearnet and 
Darknet. Cybercriminals tend to frequent these sites which sell just about 
anything imaginable, including malware, counterfeits, drugs and weapons, DDoS 
attacks, card numbers, and more stolen credit... 
 
Anonymized networks 
People often mistakenly think that it is overly complicated and technical to gain 
access to the Darknet. However, in recent years, it has on the contrary become 
very simple and intuitive. Anonymized networks which are in the form of a 
software layer allowing applications (internet browser, email client, peer-to-peer 
software ... etc.) to connect to the net in encrypted form offer documentation 
that is very provided to novices and there are many forums and tutorials to 
familiarize yourself with these networks. Some Darknet marketplaces are 
members-only or only operate by invitation, in order to control who sees and has 
access to the services they offer. 
 
Several options are available to the user to access the Darknet. He has the choice 
between Tor, The Onion Router, and I2P, for Invisible Internet Project. Each has 
its advantages and disadvantages; the choice depends on the intentions of the 
user. 
 
The most famous of these is probably Tor, an anonymous internet proxy that 
directs traffic via a global network made up of thousands of voluntary relays. Tor 
encapsulates messages in multiple encrypted layers and sends them via a two-
way Tor network-wide relay circuit. This proxy also offers a central directory that 
allows you to manage what you see on the network. 
 
New Tor users are offered basic documentation. The approach is so simple that 
Tor has become very popular with ordinary users in just a few years. The Tor 
Browser Bundle makes it much easier for the average user to connect to Tor. Over 
the years, many academic studies have looked at Tor and the project now has 
very significant funding. The only remaining concern is the reliability of Tor's 
output nodes. Hackers can create malicious exit nodes or spy on traffic leaving the 
network. The best use of Tor is therefore that of a proxy to browse the Internet 
anonymously. 
 
I2p is a network layer to communicate anonymously in peer-to-peer, reserved for 
internal services. Computers equipped with I2P can thus exchange end-to-end 
encrypted data. I2P uses unidirectional tunnels and encryption layers while Tor 
tunnels are bidirectional. 
 
I2P is not very well known compared to Tor. Few university studies have looked at 
it, but all users have access to a wealth of documentation. One of the drawbacks 
of I2P is the limited number of outgoing proxies to the Internet. The best i2P app 
is peer-to-peer file sharing. 
 
It's not always easy to access Darknet marketplaces if you don't know what you're 
looking for. You will often find lists of hidden services or .onion links on Clearnet 
sites, such as Reddit and DeepDotWeb. TheHiddenWiki.org is recommended to 
start looking for hidden services and marketplaces, as well as DNstats.net. 
DNstats provides up-to-date information on the status of marketplaces and news 
on new sites online. 
 
Among the Darknet marketplaces, there are for example AlphaBay, Valhalla, 
Dream, Hansa, The Real Deal, DHL or even Outlaw. 
 
Some search engines are also useful on the Darknet. The two most popular are 
Grams, which is inspired by Google, and Torch. These two sites allow you to 
search for content on marketplaces and other hidden services on the Darknet. 
 
There is nothing special or unique about these markets, but they gained 
popularity after the Silk Roads site shutdown. Certain markets are present on 
both the Darknet and the Clearnet. Sites like 0day today, hack forums, TorCrds, 
Hell and others sell items similar to those on Dark Web Links and accept bitcoins. 
And one can normally find services identical to those of the Darknet on a number 
of hacking forums such as V3rmillion, Raid Forums, GreySec, RealForums, or even 
Evilzone. 
 
Most sellers accept Bitcoin or other types of cryptocurrency. On many sites, they 
must pay a form of deposit to be allowed to sell products or services on the site. 
The value of these down payments is between 0.1 and 1 BTC. Some sites closed to 
the public require newcomers to be recommended by a member; otherwise they 
will be denied access to the marketplace. 
 
New sites emerge each year, around ten last year. This year LEO Market, 
TheDetoxMarket and Apple Market are some of the new online marketplaces. 
Some of these sites do not stay on the Darknet for long; they are often hacked or 
taken out of service by the competition.