What is The Dark Web, and Why You Should Care
You may have heard about the “Dark Web,” and be wondering what it is, how it works, and if you need to be concerned about it. In this article, we’ll give you all the details you need to know about the dark web.
What is the dark web?
Basically, there are 3 commonly-defined layers of the web, as follows:
- Surface web–This includes websites and information that you would find during a routine search with Google or another search engine.
- Invisible web–This includes pages that are accessible, but not searchable–such as web-based email clients, online banking portals and so on.
- Dark web–The “dark web” is purposefully inaccessible to traditional search engines and browsers, and accessible only through special browsers, such as the TOR Project.
If you want more details about exactly how the dark web works, this guide from MIS|TI is a good place to start.
Who uses the dark web?
Lots of different people use the dark web, and some of them are not malicious, and simply want to keep their information private. But due to its anonymous and hard-to-access nature, the dark web is a hotbed for criminal activity. The two main types of criminal users include:
- Users engaging in criminal activities–This can include buying and selling drugs, guns, passports, cryptocurrencies, illicit materials and so on.
- Brokers who buy and sell stolen information–Identity theft is very common on the dark web. There are people who buy and sell credit card info, banking details, exploit kits, personal information, and company data for identity theft purposes.
Though it’s certainly possible to use the dark web for innocent purposes, most people who use it fall into one of these categories.
Why should you care about the dark web?
There are two primary reasons. First, if your company experiences a large data breach, the personal details, credit card information or other information that you’ve lost will appear on a marketplace in the dark web–so that the hackers can sell it and turn a profit.
Second, the dark web has not been created with security in mind. If companies and individuals connect to it directly, your IP address could be traced back to your home or workplace–further increasing your risk of a hack or data breach.
Protect yourself from data breaches, criminals & more with JPMerc
Unfortunately, data breaches are a part of life in 2019. And that’s why you need to be aware of the dark web, how it works, and how IT security services can help. By taking proper preventive measures–like scanning the dark web for stolen data before it’s sold and broadcasted throughout the world–you can minimize risk at your business.
Need help keeping your data safe from the dark web? At JPMerc & Co., we have an in-house team of IT specialists with experience protecting both individuals and businesses from the dark web. To learn more and get started, you can give us a call at (508) 986-9005, or email Joe at joe@jpmerc.com.
