Administrators of the biggest English speaking forum TOR1 started a new project to combat Darknet criminals. The 2nd of March was the day they launched a new R. Search engine (something similar to Google) that allows users to look for illicit items from multiple Darknet Markets at once. In the end, illegal information will be easier to locate for any cybercriminal.
A brief explanation for Darknet newcomers This is the reason why the Darknet isn’t like the normal web. You don’t have a main website like Google or Bing that let you look up the entire darknet. To access any website, you must to know the exact URL or address. There are forums available to assist you in your search on the dark net, but to enter they must be aware that they exist. There have been attempts to create an official search engine in order to assist in the search for illegal actions. Of course, comparing Google with R. search engines is an enormous reduction. With Google you can explore the entire Clearnet but with R. search, we’re able to search the only darknet markets (DNM) with TOR and not all of them.
Very similar to Google
The idea of the idea of Darknet world market link (DNM) search engine to look through the offers of various stores is not new. What is unique are the people behind it. The group is comprised composed of moderators and administrators “D. forum” the largest discussion forum in the English language sphere of TOR it was launched in February 2018 in response to the broader removal of Darknet related subjects on Reddit. D. became one of the primary information hubs on TOR. When you’re looking for opinions on DNM, specific DNM vendors, or new fraud techniques or aren’t sure where you can purchase something, that forum is the first destination for a lot of Darknet users visit. The same is true for people who are looking for instructions about what to do to prevent fraud the latest services offered by DNM as well as the latest news in the Darknet or anything related to it, frauds, drugs , or any other illegal activity. In this forum, you will find numerous sections that clearly discuss illegal activity such as Fraud Carding, Fraud, Fraud Resources, Counterfeiting, Dark Markets, Fake ID, counterfeit Money, LSD, Drug Manufacture, Malware, Hacking, etc.
Each big DNM and every popular type of drug or fraud has its own section. Also, there are sections for certain nations, currencies, and popular TOR websites. Only pedophilia, pro-terrorism, weapons, poisons and other related subjects are banned. Beyond that, there’s full freedom of speech.
The creators of D. Forum are already one of the most prominent vendors in the English speaking areas of TOR and enjoy a good reputation. This is the reason why opening R. search could offer the forum a new purpose. To highlight the link between the well-known forum R. search needs you to sign in from D. forum in order to sign-up on R. search. This is even obligatory when you’re an DNM vendor and wish to update information about you on R. search. There is no given information regarding whether R. the search engine collects information about users searches and their preferences. We all know that Google utilizes search history to profile users on the internet. What if you and the D. team can make the same feature, and profile which of its users are interested in which kinds of illegal activities? There may be a myriad of tools to gather more information on Darknet users who want to stay secretive.
The appearance is R. search
R. search appears appealing (in contrast in comparison to the others Darknet websites) and is very user-friendly. It offers basic filters that include: minimum and maximum prices, shipping country, Darknet Markets. At the time of writing this piece, R. the search engine indexes 23,7 million vendors, 61 thousand listings (that’s what we call “offers” in the context of DNM) and 1 million reviews by DNM users. Currently, R. search contains just 6 active DNM and archive information about DNM that have already been removed. The most important thing to consider is how the new DNMs are added and who decides on it. D. Forum team is trying to create a database consisting of only the most reliable DNM vendors, without scammers. Of course, it’s their own determination as to which DNM are reliable enough to be included in the database, and which are not. Thanks to that the role of the group in the Darknet infosphere is becoming more and more significant.
A significant feature is that R. search includes in its database archived data from shut DNMs. Markets on the Darknet change in their direction, and sellers often need to move from one location to another. Their market data usually do not appear in the new market and buyers need to trust the vendors’ claims that they are trustworthy, reliable etc. Thanks to R. search, customers can examine the reputation of vendors who were in the old DNMs. R. search has a very unique type of search engine in which it is possible to find vendors using their PGP fingerprints or their public PGP Key2. Because of this, if somebody claims to be Mr. X and he had outstanding scores on DNM’s that are dead, one can verify whether Mr. X on these dead DNM had the identical PGP Key. PGP Key is the main way for Darknet users to authenticate themselves.