Deep Web E-Book

Claude Kramer

• Herausgeber: BookThug
• Kategorie: Wissenschaft und neue Technologien
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 31

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2014

Beschreibung

The web was never really needed to commit crime. Perhaps the web, like a scalpel, may be used to save a life or to end it. There was a time when just being aware of the existence of the Deep Web was limited to few people. That made it more likely to be used with illegal intentions. The branch dedicated to illegal activity was named the Darknet, and it was just a small part of the Deep Web anyways. Now we know that things have changed, and those who are approaching the Deep Web concept for the first time, should not follow everything they hear. Much of the data comes from that study of the University of Berkeley in 2001, and has been distorted several times, like a story that is told from generation to generation, until someone decides to turn it into a book. The Deep Web can generate confusion; discover the myths and facts hidden in the depths of the great virtual iceberg.

Leseprobe

Inhalt

Introduction

A digital limbo called the Deep Web

The functioning of the hidden

The iceberg within the Internet

The Deep Web as a synonym for illegal

Accessing the Deep Web

The risks in the deep ocean

Bitcoin and the Deep Web

The myths about the web

Famous pirates

Heirs of Tor

Anonymous routing

The Internet’s submarine hunting

Poseidon lives in the deep sea

Introduction

It’s just after noon in San Francisco’s Public Library. The tables are almost empty. It’s a Tuesday in October, 2013. There is a peaceful silence. The librarians finish ordering the books that were consulted last night. The reading tables are almost empty. At one of them, to the left, sits a man wearing jeans and a t-shirt. He has just taken two books. He opens them and puts them on the table. Then, he takes his laptop, opens it and starts typing.

A reader who was sitting in the right silently approaches the man, grabs him by the shoulders, pulls him away from his laptop making sure he does not close it, and then pushes him against the wall. Suddenly, the silence breaks as a group of armed FBI agents bursts into the reading room and seizes the man.

The suspect is Ross Ulbricht. He has just typed the user key on his computer, which is already connected to the library´s wireless network. He is 29 years old. In the virtual world he operates under the pseudonym Dread Pirate Roberts.

The most important goal of this scandalous FBI operation had not been to capture Ulbricht, but to confiscate his computer while it was open and unblocked. If Ulbricht had been able to close his laptop, a complex protection system would have turned it into a regular student’s computer when opened again, leaving no chance to trace any data whatsoever.

That laptop had been Silk Road’s administration center, the biggest drug trafficking market worldwide. It was an online market, similar to Amazon or eBay that offered different varieties of drugs.

The pseudonym Dread Pirate Roberts was taken from a character from novel The Princess Bride by William Goldman. It is about a pirate of legendary reputation, known in the seven seas for his cruelty and skilled fencing.

The FBI discovery was later published by the US Government. In Silk Road’s administration page were found commercial transactions, types of drugs for every transaction, and even digital accounting evidence, which reflected income for approximately 80 million dollars.

Dread Pirate Roberts was a mere intermediary between dealers and consumers. He withheld a 15% of every transaction. Sellers would publish their products without neither qualm nor language restrictions, for example “five grams of pure crystal cocaine”. There was a tutorial which guided the beginners, and a services section which illustrated topics such as how to hack into automatic teller machines. There were guides about other digital products and even about falsifications.

But the investigation would end up revealing a terrifying fact: Ulbricht seemed to have spent part of his income on hiring hitmen. However, the investigation failed to prove that any murder had been committed.

For some months, Silk Road had signified many millions for Ulbricht, but also many headaches. There were blackmailers, swindlers, and even buyers who had been captured and could connect Dread Pirate Roberts, aiding the Federal Drugs Administration. Concerned about the possibility that someone would speak, Ulbricht had ordered the murders.

Even though the orders could be proved, the presumed victims were alive and kicking. Despite the fact that none of the crimes could be certified, Ulbricht’s willingness to finance the murders prevented him from being granted conditional release.