In the interim, many in the DNM community will assume the marketplace performed an exit scam and continue their activity on other platforms. Bayonet/GraveSac, and has become the preferred method for disrupting the ecosystem. In total, there were 2,158 vendors who advertised at least one of the 96,672 product listings across the 30 marketplaces. On average, marketplaces had 109 unique vendor aliases and 3,222 product listings related to stolen data products. Marketplaces recorded 632,207 sales across these markets, which generated $140,337,999 in total revenue.
Nevada “Network Security Incident” Shuts Down State Offices And Services
As a result, law enforcement has adopted an intelligence-led enforcement strategy incorporating DNM takedowns into longer-term investigations rather than treating them as end goals. According to the now-deleted snapshot of stolen data, one source of Gravy’s location data is an app helping tens of millions of gay men connect with one another. The data appeared to provide pinpoint locations of app users, including as many as 200 based in the U.A.E., where homosexuality is illegal and punishable by imprisonment. Markets like Perico represent the next wave — safer for vendors, harder for law enforcement to trace, and accessible only to privacy-savvy users.
What’s The Benefit Of Escrow Security?
The market is also known for its listings related to financial fraud, such as phishing tools and stolen credit card information. H25.io is a premium directory in the Tor network, offering access to a diverse and meticulously curated list of onion sites. Our mission is to simplify navigation in the complex and evolving world of the darknet. Here, you’ll find links to various resources, including educational archives, private forums, anonymous services, and more. It has built a reputation for being a reliable source of stolen credit card data and PII.
- This section pits our ranked markets against each other across key metrics—trade volume, listing counts, vendor networks, escrow reliability, cryptocurrency support, uptime, and user experience—as of February 27, 2025.
- Monero (XMR) offers untraceable transactions, cutting tracking risks—BTC’s blockchain exposed 10% of trades in 2024, dropping its use from 80% to 60% in 2025.
- Its catalog spans pharmaceuticals (60%), digital goods like hacked accounts and software (25%), fraud tools such as credit card dumps (10%), and miscellaneous items (5%), catering to a diverse 15,000+ user base and 1,200+ vendors.
- Another way to gauge people’s interest in the Dark Web is to examine the percentage of those who look up the term “Dark Web” on Google.
- In 2023, Chainalysis discovered that some popular fraud shops rely on payment processors as a way to reduce their own costs, add efficiency to their operations, and perhaps add a layer of security to transactions.
- Unrivaled in its size, reach, and complexity, and vertically integrated network—along with its status as a crucial hub for illegal cryptocurrency cashout services—made it a significant player amongst darknet marketplaces.
Bohemia accepts Monero and Bitcoin as payment methods and places a strong emphasis on protecting user anonymity through PGP encryption. Its user base is primarily English-speaking, and it appeals to more sophisticated cybercriminals. 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. We’re back with another video in our Webz Insider video series on everything web data.
Security Blogs
According to the indictment, vendors on Hydra could create accounts on the site to advertise their illegal products, and buyers could create accounts to view and purchase the vendors’ products. Hydra vendors offered a variety of illicit drugs for sale, including cocaine, methamphetamine, LSD, heroin and other opioids. The vendors openly advertised their drugs on Hydra, typically including photographs and a description of the controlled substance.
Abacus Upgrades
Russian-speaking DNM customers were historically frequent users of RuTor, where they would exchange information. In fact, much of the Russian-language DNM ecosystem emerged from such forums. However, in the wake of Hydra’s takedown many Russian vendors set up independent vendor shops and automated Telegram shops employing Telegram shop bots, although this did not imply a wholesale move away from DNMs.
- With 12,000+ users and 900+ vendors, it boasts a 95% vendor rating—ideal for quality-focused dark pool trading.
- These marketplaces are full of risks (security, legal, ethical issues – all of them).
- The very first of these marketplaces to pair the darknet with Bitcoin was the Silk Road.
- The months and years after Silk Road’s closure were marked by a greatly increased number of shorter-lived markets as well as semi-regular law enforcement takedowns, hacks, scams and voluntary closures.
- Some sellers offer cracked versions of expensive software that you’d typically pay hundreds of dollars for.
- However, in the wake of Hydra’s takedown many Russian vendors set up independent vendor shops and automated Telegram shops employing Telegram shop bots, although this did not imply a wholesale move away from DNMs.
How To Spot A Scam Vendor?
However, nearly as soon as Hydra shut down, OMG began seeing high inflows for the first time, more than half of which came from Hydra counterparties. ASAP Market offers 25,000+ listings and $4 million monthly across BTC, XMR, LTC, and USDT, with a 7% share. Its 14,000+ users and 1,000+ vendors leverage multi-crypto flexibility for seamless darknet trading. Drughub Market specializes in pharmaceuticals, offering 15,000+ listings and $2 million monthly via BTC. With 8,000+ users and 600+ vendors, it commands a 10% share of darknet drug trades—a rising star since 2023.
How Do I Dispute A Trade?
As more marketplaces emerge and established platforms seek new ways to conceal their operations, several trends are likely to shape the future of this clandestine economy. Finally, the article will highlight the escalating risks tied to financial crimes and data breaches, both of which have become alarmingly common in recent years. As ransomware attacks surge and personal data is increasingly commodified, the Dark Web stands out as a primary facilitator of cybercrime operations.
Ransomware And Cryptocurrency:
Instead, you can use a VPN to spoof your internet connection to somewhere completely different, such as Poland. This stands for Virtual Private Network and basically spoofs your internet traffic to somewhere else in the world. This means you can remain entirely anonymous while browsing and using the internet. By logging and reverse searching your IP address, they can locate and identify you. This means they could infect your computer with malicious software; they could steal your personal details like your bank information, or even directly drain your account. They can then trace the user, identify them as far down as their name and address, and act accordingly.
This way, Tor makes it much more difficult to trace the traffic back to the original user. Additionally, Tor enables users to access darknet sites hosted on .onion domains, something most common browsers can’t do. 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. The Moneyzine.com stats team will then look at the usage data for Tor, the go-to browser for accessing the Dark Web. Finally, we’ll focus on the notorious Dark Web marketplaces, explore their history, and review the latest prices of various illicit items.
It has gained a reputation for being a reliable source of high-quality data for cybercriminals. Based on our observations from analysis on dark web data using Lunar, we’ve identified the top 7 marketplaces on the dark web in 2025. We developed Lunar to monitor the deep and dark web, including dark web marketplace sites.
Various cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Monero can be used to make purchases. The Abacus Market links to the new dark web marketplace sections and took over much of the vacuum left by the AlphaBay takedown. It’s been a constant back-and-forth between cybercriminals and law enforcement, with each new site trying to be smarter and more secure than the last. Ransomware and cryptocurrency-based crimes saw a significant increase in 2023, with a nearly $176 million rise compared to 2022. For instance, cybercriminals can buy credit card details with a $5,000 balance for just $110. As of 2020, nearly 57% of the dark web was estimated to contain illegal content, including violence and extremist platforms.
Its 93% escrow success rate resolves disputes in 48 hours for 87% of cases, supporting its speed-focused approach. Sellers like “ViceRx” and “PillMaster” hold 97% ratings, offering solid drugs with 93% shipping reliability, though stock runs low 5–10% of the time due to its niche. Vice City’s 18,000+ listings trail Alphabay’s 60,000, but its 80% drug focus keeps it deep there, with prices 10% below multi-category markets thanks to seller rivalry. Its $2.5M monthly haul shows a dedicated base, though sticking to BTC and XMR limits its pull for some privacy chasers.
