Would you know how to access the dark web?

[NoFriendsNoEnemies]

Just that.

Whenever someone appears to be convicted of child abuse, accessing violent porn etc they always seem to trot out the cliche that they came across the images by mistake or that they were downloaded to them when they were downloading something else.

And for some obscure reason they always have their band of loyal supporters who believe them.

But quite apart from the fact that it’s obviously lies, I was always under the impression that to access that kind of material you had to visit the dark web, and so accessing that kind of thing in error is in fact not possible.

But how many people would actually know how to access the dark web? And if they wouldn’t how could anyone believe that these kinds of things could be stumbled upon in error?

Would you know how to access the dark web? Not for nefarious purposes obviously, but just in general. If you wanted to access it, would you know how?

@WhenDovesFly

I've no idea how to access it, but am I the only one who stupidly imagines that the 'dark web' is like a negative of the ordinary web, ie, all black pages with white or other coloured writing on them haha!

Yes, this is totally how I see it every time someone says “Dark Web!”

In answer to the op, haven’t got a clue.
Can’t ever imagine doing anything online that I “would” need to access it.

I thought it was illegal to access the dark web?

@Baublebonkers

I thought it was illegal to access the dark web?

You're in good company, this is a thread for sharing misconceptions

You can download the TOR (The Onion Ring) browser from Firefox or any other 'regualr' browser. Once done you can access the Dark Net. This is different form the Deep Web which is just those websites that can't be searched from sites like Google. These are usually web sites that have been set up for say, White Papers and the like. The Dark Net is something else; for one, it's not easy to search, your have to 'know' where to look and how to access the page you're after, but there are some basic search engines you can use. It looks a lot like the Internet of 1999 - pretty basic and clunky. You are more likely to find drugs, armanents and expensive stolen goods (jewellery, watches, artworks) than just porn. The Dark Net was designed by the DEA to track drug dealers without being traced, the drug dealers found out and then used the platform for their own interests, without being traced! The concept is, frankly, brilliant. The internetwork connectivity works like the layers of an Onion; Each layer is in contact with the next but not the outer or inner layers. Oh, if you want to buy anything on the Dark Net, you'll need BitCoin.

Yes, but I have no interest in going on the dark web.

Nope. I have no clue. I am sure that my elder spawn knows...he is a cloud architect and IT person (supervisor for a LARGE company), in fact I asked him about it. He replied, "Yeah, I know, but you don't need to know. There's nothing on there for you."

@Baublebonkers

I thought it was illegal to access the dark web?

Even if it was, what’s your point?

Yes but only for a role in law enforcement.

I only had this conversation with my DH the other night after watching a doc about this awful site where people advertise themselves to be canabalised (sp?) I have absolutely no clue, thank goodness. He did say you have to have something or other but I cant even remember what he said. I can't wrap my head around the fact that we have these weirdos amongst us. Scary.

WomanStanleyWoman

Baublebonkers
I thought it was illegal to access the dark web?
Even if it was, what’s your point?

That is my point 😏 whats yours ?

So it was just a general expression of surprise that it isn’t illegal? I’d read it as ‘Why are you asking if people know how to do this if it’s illegal?’

I’m sorry if I’ve misunderstood - I thought it was the faux-naïveté you often see on MN regarding anything that might be legally iffy.

Not RTFT yet (about half way through), but I have a couple of questions:

Is Tor the only way if accessing it, or are there other browser options?

Do you need to use a VPN to access it? (I wouldn't even know where to start with this, are some VPNs not dodgy themselves?)

How would you know what Web address you wanted though? If there is no search engine on it?

I don't have a burning desire to go there but just wondered 🤷‍♂️

Agreed, I would not trust these sorts of shady encryption services. But PGP has been around since 1991, is open source, and had been widely written about and analysed. No one profits by it (directly) and it is not used only for crime. Since Phil Zimmerman invented it there have been constant rumours that it's been penetrated by US security services, but there's no evidence to suggest that, and the fact that (I think?) it's still banned by ITAR in the US and Canada suggests that The Feds Don't Like It!

I'm happy with the principles behind PGP as far as I can grasp them. The maths is sound. However a lot of implementations using it are fatally flawed in their choice and use of seeds.

www.infoworld.com/article/2940551/software-developers-are-failing-to-implement-crypto-correctly-data-reveals.html

It's a little like needing to add your own locks to a rented house ...

You don't even need Tor to access dodgy stuff. Just the chat app Kik can be enough.

For anyone who wants to know more, the podcast Darknet Diaries is worth a listen.

I’ve used the dark web to buy something with Bitcoin (definitely not porn related). There are websites on the normal web that give instructions on how to access it and give the URLs of various dark marketplaces. There used to be a subreddit with detailed instructions but it was deleted. You can download TOR by googling it. You can also Google the websites that provide instructions and URLs, but you generally have to know the name of the website you’re looking for. A lot of this info is passed on by word of mouth in certain circles. A friend told me and I don’t know where they heard it from.

I don't know, because I've never needed/wanted to know... But I could probably work it out pretty quick.

Absolutely zero clue.
I barely know anything about it other than that awful things can be found there, I have no desire to even try and work out how to get on it.
Plus, most days I struggle to access things on the non dark web, I’m a very non techy person and in this instance I’m glad!

No idea and I now know what Tor is

I know how to do it, but I wouldn’t go near it.

@ValleyOfTheTramadols

I’ve used the dark web to buy something with Bitcoin (definitely not porn related). There are websites on the normal web that give instructions on how to access it and give the URLs of various dark marketplaces. There used to be a subreddit with detailed instructions but it was deleted. You can download TOR by googling it. You can also Google the websites that provide instructions and URLs, but you generally have to know the name of the website you’re looking for. A lot of this info is passed on by word of mouth in certain circles. A friend told me and I don’t know where they heard it from.

"The Hub" is a very good starting place. It's a discussion forum - very similar to Mumsnet in many ways, but without so much ranting about anything trans

You can find the onion URL pretty easily by googling on the clear web.

Yes, I’m very techie and feel the need to know these things. The URLs are called onions. I use the TOR browser that has been mentioned a lot. Hidden wikis are the best places to go to look for specific things.

I'd panic if I accidentally found myself on the dark web, shut down fast. That's one rabbit hole too far

You won't....

I once used to incubate eggs. A batch were born one had splay leg. So I sat at my laptop typed in sick chick and up came a website with awful pictures on it just for a few seconds then it went nuts like a cascade of data. Escape button wouldn't work, I did a hard shut down and phoned a computer engineer we used.

When he stopped chuckling he told me to bring the laptop in and he'd check it out for me.

🙈