A
Darknet is an overlay network that can only be accessed with specific
software, configurations, or authorization, often using non-standard
communications protocols and ports.
The
Dark Net, Deep Net or The Hidden Internet are anonymous that means you
will not be able to know the website owner or to who the website belongs
too, Over the usual Internet,
A
non-indexed website owner or website developer can be tracked by doing
some Internet searches or wondering to different sites. However, web
pages on the Dark Net or say Dark Web are using the TOR (The Onion
Router) network and the foundation of the TOR is to include numerous
nodes, so the source is not traceable.
The Deep Web and the Darknet
Most
people are confused about what exactly the Darknet is. Firstly, the
Darknet is sometimes confused with the Deep Web. 'Deep Web' refers to
all parts of the Internet which cannot be indexed by search engines, and
so can't be found through Google, Bing, Yahoo, and so forth. Experts
believe that this Deep Web is hundreds of times larger than the 'surface
Web' (i.e., the internet you can easily get to from Google).
Birth of the Darknet
October 29, 1969
Charley
Kline, a student at the University of California, Los Angeles, types
out the first message between computers connected by ARPANET, the
Internet progenitor developed by the Pentagon’s Defense Advanced
Research Projects Agency.
Darknets
were able to receive data from ARPANET but had addresses that did not
appear in the network lists and would not answer pings or other
inquiries.
Just
a few years later, a number of isolated, secretive networks begin to
appear alongside ARPANET. Some eventually become known as "Darknets."
Birth of The Onion Router
September 20, 2002
Researchers
at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory release an early version of Tor
("The Onion Router"), which conceals the location and IP address of
users who download the software. Originally designed to protect the
identity of American operatives and dissidents in repressive countries
like China, Tor also has another natural constituency: denizens of the
darknet.
As
of 2015 "The Darknet" is often used interchangeably with the dark web
due to the quantity of hidden services on Tor's darknet. The term is
often used inaccurately and interchangeably with the deep web search due
to Tor's history as a platform that could not be search indexed. Mixing
uses of both of these terms has been described as inaccurate, with some
commentators recommending the terms be used in distinct fashions
Currency of the darknet
Bitcoin...
Bitcoin
plays an important role throughout the Darknet. Since staying anonymous
is key, Bitcoin is the only currency you can pay with there. Unlike the
“normal” web almost every other website has the “Bitcoin accepted” sign
displayed on it. Because of Bitcoin’s pseudo-anonymous nature, it’s
the perfect currency to power such an ecosystem.
on
January 3, 2009 A man calling himself Satoshi Nakamoto "mines" the
first Bitcoin, a form of untraceable cryptocurrency. Unlike previous
digital currencies that failed because there was nothing to prevent
users from literally copying their money, Bitcoin makes use of an
innovative public accounting ledger that prevents double spending.
Unsurprisingly, the cryptocurrency is an instant hit in the darknet, its
anonymity making it a perfect tool for money laundering and criminal
activity.
1 Bitcoin equals 468.53 US Dollar as of 28/may/2016
The Uses of Darknet
Darknets in general may be used for various reasons, such as:
To better protect the privacy rights of citizens from targeted and mass surveillance
Protecting dissidents from political reprisal
Whistleblowing and news leaks
Computer crime (hacking, file corruption etc.)
Sale of restricted goods on Darknet markets
File sharing (porography, confidential files, illegal or counterfeit software etc.)
Access the Darknet
All darknets network require specific software installed or network configurations made to access them
To
access the hidden web you need two things – for starter The Onion
Browser (also known as TOR Browser) that can access dot onion pages and a
search engine or web page that can help you to search the dark web.
Recently
there are many websites that are known as the deep web directories.
Since they are hidden and are unable to search due to the reason that
they are not listed correctly. Most of the links on such directories do
not guide you where the link will lead to.
Here is some software used to access the darknet
1) Tor the most popular instance of a darknet
So what is Tor?
Tor
is free software and an open network that helps you defend against
traffic analysis, a form of network surveillance that threatens personal
freedom and privacy, confidential business activities and
relationships, and state security.
The
Tor network is a group of volunteer-operated servers that allows people
to improve their privacy and security on the Internet. Tor's users
employ this network by connecting through a series of virtual tunnels
rather than making a direct connection, thus allowing both organizations
and individuals to share information over public networks without
compromising their privacy. Along the same line, Tor is an effective
censorship circumvention tool, allowing its users to reach otherwise
blocked destinations or content. Tor can also be used as a building
block for software developers to create new communication tools with
built-in privacy features.What is Tor?
Tor
is free software and an open network that helps you defend against
traffic analysis, a form of network surveillance that threatens personal
freedom and privacy, confidential business activities and
relationships, and state security.
Other Popular Deep Web Technologies
I2P
– This is an anonymity network which you may find slightly more techie
to install and get running, but once you do there are some great tools
and apps, including one to make it easier for you to set up your own
hidden blog.
FAI
(Free Anonymous Internet) – Based on blockchain technology, this
network allows for the anonymous publishing and browsing of content and
has a social network style homepage that lets you follow other users,
share content with your followers, and tip the creators of content you
like. FreeNet – One of the older and most highly regarded systems,
FreeNet
combines deep web with DarkNet. This means that you can maintain a list
of trusted peers and either connect to them only, or connect to them in
preference to less trusted peers. As far as I know, this gives the
highest level of privacy and security of any system, but does require a
little more effort to make the most of.
ZeroNet
– Based on torrent technology in combination with Bitcoin encryption,
this is a new system which is not well developed but which I think holds
promise for the future.
Is this safe to browse the Dark Net?
All
safety depends on you. What you are looking for? You can create a
private chat room where you can talk with your friends, or you can also
hire a person for the wet job(for the wrong work). It could be a
journalist for exchanging of intelligence documentation, or someone
selling illegal drugs. There are also websites that sell unlicensed
weapons.
If
you are willing to analyze the types of sites that are accessible on
the darknet, then a majority of web sites usually belongs to the
Gangsters. Why, due to the fact that it gives you full anonymity. You
will find some forum where people will be talking about suicides,
murders and the odd things they did. And If you have a week heart than
don’t even think to search that!
How to stay anonymous when surfing the Darknet
In
order to access the Tor network you have to remain anonymous, this is
not a request, it’s a prerequisite. This is done through a special web
browser called, surprisingly enough, TOR. TOR stands for “The Onion
Router”, it got its name from the fact that in order to reveal the core
user of the browser you’ll have to peel a lot of layers off just like an
onion.
You
can use TOR to surf the pedestrian web (the everyday Internet you know
) anonymously, or you can use it to access the Darknet.
Here’s the deal:
When
you access the pedestrian Internet , you are directly communicating
with websites. But when you’re accessing a website through TOR it’s like
asking another user to ask another user to ask another user to fetch
the webpage information for you. This is of course a over simplified
explanation but the general idea is that communications bounce around a
lot of different computers and it makes it very difficult to track who
is actually viewing a website, sending an email or conducting any other
action.
It also makes the Internet connection extremely slow, but for now here’s what you need to know about TOR:
It’s
a free to download browser, The browser is built on top of the Firefox
browser’s open source code so it’s pretty intuitive. Once you download
and launch it it will connect you to the TOR network and you’re good to
go.
TOR
network was initially created by the US military to communicate
anonymously. They still dump government files – not open to the general
public – on the Darknet. Since the federal and other governments are
themselves using the Darknet, they do not consider it feasible to order
TOR to shut it down.
Additional security – using VPN
Although
no one knows your identity when using TOR, some people like to add an
additional layer of protection and connect to TOR through a Virtual
Private Network (VPN). The reason is, that even though you’re anonymous,
you can still be identified as using TOR for “something”.
Important security steps when using the Darknet
Turn
off running scripts in the TOR options (click the button just before
the address bar). This is because most of the sites in Darknet are
criminal in nature. If you land on one, they might want to trace you
down. And scripts created using JavaScript can be dangerous if they
manage to store something on your computer.
Think
twice before you click any link as you do not know who operates the
website and where any of these links lead to. Use only known directories
to reach authenticated destinations.
DO
NOT DOWNLOAD ANYTHING TO YOUR COMPUTER. No BitTorrents and no downloads
as they may give away your actual IP when storing things to your
computer.
This is not for you
In
all likelihood, you’ll never need to venture into the Deep Web. The
Surface Web contains all the services and tools the average person could
ever want. You won’t find any streaming video services or social
networks or corporate websites you will feel like you are using the
internet on 1990 .
months
ago few social networks start to appear on the darknet but it's not
yet that large and its not for your daily life ! it's a darknet social
network ! can you imagine a social network that was made only for mafia
men !
The Darknet is fraught with bogeymen just waiting for you to let down your guard.
you
will be an easy target on the darknet for those who are waiting to
catch the new victim ! don't be the victim everyone is looking for !
But if you ever do need the sanctity of secure communications and true anonymity
a level of protection that the Surface Web simply can’t provide then rest easy.
Everyone has a voice in the Darknet, down in the depths where even Google’s spiders fear to crawl.
This
post was written for educational purposes only. If you wish to use the
Darknet, do it at your own discretion and at your own risk. Make sure to
be aware of any consequences that may follow.
Sufyan Hacker (Author)
What Is Darknet & How To Access It
Reviewed by
Anonymous
on
23:49:00
Rating:
5
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