We’re all aware that the internet is a pretty ridic place that houses the most bizarre of things. Sure, some days it’s a splendid sugar-coated paradise with videos of puppies running so fast their butts overtake them, but other days it is the hellhole decimating the earth from within. And at the centre of that flaming hellhole, in the deepest of recesses of the internet, is the dark web.
We decided to have a lil’ chat with a hacker who’s been on the dark web (anonymously, of course) to get the details on what actually goes on down there – and if we should legit steer clear of it all. Turns out? Probs.
PEDESTRIAN.TV: How did you feel when you first accessed it?
Hacker: Absolutely apprehensive – you’re all of a sudden in this system where web links don’t quite make sense, nothing is hidden behind consent/warning filters and there’s less of a sense of history (you’ll often end up on a forum thinking ‘how did I get here’). It was crazy. But it also shows the extent of human activity. It’s like visiting a corrupt city, but all the signposts have been blurred out – you know you’re in a bad place, but not exactly sure where to go from there.
Is it really the messed up hotbed of criminal activity that everyone thinks it is?
Yes, and no – it used to be a lot worse. You can still do a lot of illegal stuff on there, but it’s harder and more involved now than, say, 5-10 years ago. It was crazy – the really dark sites were right on the surface. There was child trafficking, drugs and weapons on so many sites/forums. Every sick, twisted kind of material you can think of was prolific – and accessible to anyone who connected. They talk and act as if the law does not exist, openly talking and scheming about illegal activities. If anything it’s a place for criminals to come together and network, much like a forum on an clearnet website.
What’s the craziest shit you’ve seen there?
Drugs, weapons and ‘services’ are a regular occurrence. It was a while ago, but I’ve also seen things like human trafficking and hitmen in the past. Now, at least with the ‘surface-level’ of the dark web that most of us can access easily, it would take a lot more to bring that kind of activity to the surface. There are also fake bomb threat calls, ATM skimming hardware, malware for sale, credit card numbers and identities for sale.
Is there anything or anyone on there that might surprise us?
I think law enforcement is a lot more active on there than people realise, and I’ve seen a bit of journalist activity actually (again, a while ago) as it generally allows for more honest, open communication. That’s another interesting part – the dialogue that can come out of these dark places is often more brutally honest than anywhere on the regular web.
How scared should everyday folk actually be about the shit that goes down there?
Look, yes, you can find almost anything on there, but it’s also somewhat contained to those sites. While it can be frightening to think that there’s a thriving, dirty counterpart to the web we use every day, data from the dark web doesn’t move as fluidly as the web we share with our friends.
You can’t just ‘share’ a page from the dark web – due to the way you need to access them, it’s not that easy. So while the dark web might seem like a ticking time bomb, it’s probably never going to reach your circle of influence unless you look for it.
So folks, probs don’t wander over into the dark web if you can avoid it. Stick to the wholesome puppy butt vids, it’s better for everyone.
