What Exactly is the Dark Web?

What is the Dark Web?

Organizations face mounting pressure to protect against cybersecurity threats that originate from places most security teams never see. When stolen credentials from your vendors appear for sale online, or when threat actors discuss targeting your supply chain, these conversations happen in corners of the internet that traditional browsers can’t reach.

The dark web represents a significant blind spot for most security programs. Our threat intelligence team monitors over 7 billion leaked credential and PII databases collected from dark web sources. We’re seeing an increase in dark web activity targeting enterprise networks every quarter. Understanding what the dark web is and how it threatens your organization requires more than just technical knowledge. It’s a business imperative.

Dark web explained

The dark web refers to encrypted networks that require specific software to access. Unlike content you find through Google search or other popular search engines, dark web websites don’t appear in standard search results. You need special browsers, specifically the Tor browser or Onion browser, to reach these sites.

Here’s how it differs from what the average user encounters daily. The surface web encompasses everything accessible through traditional web browsers, such as Chrome or Firefox. When you type a search query into your default search engine, you’re accessing publicly indexed content. The dark web operates differently. It uses layered encryption to hide both the location of dark web sites and the identities of their users.

Many people confuse the dark web with the deep web, but they’re distinct. The deep web simply means unindexed content like your email inbox, online banking, or streaming subscription content behind paywalls. The dark web is a subset of the deep web that deliberately obscures user data and online activity.

How dark web browsers work

The Tor browser functions by routing your online communication through multiple encrypted layers. Each relay in the network only knows the previous and next hop, never the full path. This creates anonymity of users that makes it nearly impossible to trace someone’s online activity back to their physical location.

This technology wasn’t designed for criminal activity. Military communications originally developed these systems for secure communication. Today, communication for activists in restrictive regions, journalists protecting sources, and security researchers investigating cybersecurity threats all rely on these tools.

However, the same features that protect legitimate content also enable unauthorized activity. When individuals can access dark web content without revealing their identity, some use that anonymity for illicit purposes.

How do you access the dark web?

To access the dark web you must download the Tor browser or another dark web-friendly browser. The process is straightforward. You visit the official Tor Project website, download the software for your operating system, and install it like any normal web browser. Within minutes, average users can browse dark web sites using .onion addresses instead of traditional .com domains.

However, simply having access doesn’t mean you should use it without proper security measures. The dark web exposes visitors to malicious software, phishing attempts, and law enforcement monitoring. Many dark web websites contain illicit content or exist specifically to harvest user data from unsuspecting visitors. Security professionals who need to access these networks do so through isolated systems with additional protective layers.

The real question isn’t how to access the dark web but rather what to do once you’re there. Without knowing which forums matter, which threats are credible, or how to interpret hacker chatter, browsing accomplishes little. This is why organizations partner with threat intelligence providers rather than attempting manual dark web surveillance.

Criminal operations and darknet markets

The most infamous example remains Silk Road, the darknet market that operated from 2011 to 2013. Ross Ulbricht created this platform where users could buy drugs, stolen credit card details, and other illegal items. Law enforcement eventually shut it down, but dozens of similar darknet markets emerged to replace it.

These markets operate like standard e-commerce sites, complete with user reviews and customer service. The difference? They facilitate credit card fraud, sell malicious software, and trade stolen data. Our STRIKE Team tracks these platforms continuously because compromised credentials from your organization often end up listed there within hours of a breach.

Common illegal offerings include:

• Stolen email password combinations from corporate breaches
• Credit reports and credit card information
• Software vulnerabilities and exploit kits
• Malicious software designed to bypass security controls

The economics driving these markets reveal why they persist. Trustwave SpiderLabs research found that stolen credit card data sells for $10 to $40, complete identity profiles fetch $20 to $100, and bank account credentials range from $200 to over $1,000 depending on account balance. 

 Zero-day exploits, the most valuable commodities, trade for thousands or even millions of dollars, depending on the target system. This pricing structure makes cybercrime accessible to criminals with minimal technical skills, who can easily purchase the necessary tools and data.

What makes modern darknet markets particularly dangerous is their resilience. When authorities shut down major platforms, new ones emerge within weeks, often operated by the same criminal groups. 

They’ve adopted distributed infrastructure, cryptocurrency tumblers for payment anonymity, and sophisticated vetting processes that make infiltration increasingly difficult. Some markets now offer “vendor bonds” and escrow services, mimicking legitimate e-commerce platforms to build trust among criminals.

Why this matters for your security program

Security teams can’t afford to ignore dark web activity anymore. When threat actors discuss targeting your industry on hidden forums, when your employees’ credentials appear in paste dumps, when researchers discover software vulnerabilities being traded, your team needs visibility into these conversations.

We’ve seen cases where organizations learned about breaches affecting their third-party vendors from dark web monitoring weeks before official notifications. Our platform continuously scans dark web sources, analyzing hacker chatter and identifying when your organization appears in threat actor discussions.

This connects directly to third-party risk management. Your vendors’ compromised credentials become your problem when attackers use those access points to reach your network. Organizations with mature vendor risk programs monitor dark web content for signs their supply chain has been compromised.

Threats originating from dark web websites

Let’s break down the specific online threats that security teams encounter:

Credential exposure

Attackers harvest email password combinations through phishing, malware infections, or purchasing them from other criminals. Our database contains over 7 billion leaked credentials sourced from dark web forums and marketplaces. When we detect your domain in these dumps, it indicates unauthorized activity has occurred.

Credit card fraud operations

Criminal networks buy and sell credit card details in bulk. They use this information to plan activities ranging from small fraudulent purchases that won’t trigger credit card fraud protection systems to large-scale financial theft. Credit card fraud operations on the dark web have become increasingly sophisticated.

Malware distribution

Developers create and sell malicious software designed to exploit software vulnerabilities in enterprise systems. These tools help less technically skilled criminals launch attacks. Security teams need visibility into which malware variants are being traded and what defenses can stop them.

Reconnaissance and targeting

Before launching attacks, threat actors gather intelligence about potential targets. They research company structures, identify employees through social media, and map out technical infrastructure. Much of this planning happens on dark websites where they can collaborate without detection.

How we protect organizations from dark web risks

Our approach differs from basic dark web search engines or monitoring tools. We combine automated collection with expert analysis from our STRIKE Team, which boasts over 100 years of combined experience in threat research.

Our systems continuously crawl popular sites on the dark web, monitoring for mentions of our customers’ domains, employee email addresses, and proprietary data. We’re not just collecting information. We’re contextualizing it within broader threat patterns.

When we detect suspicious account activity related to your organization on dark web forums, you receive alerts with specific remediation guidance. If stolen credentials are detected, we’ll notify you which accounts require password resets. If threat actors are discussing vulnerabilities in software your vendors use, we’ll flag those relationships as higher risk.

This intelligence feeds directly into security ratings. Organizations with credentials appearing frequently in dark web dumps receive lower scores for information leak factors. This gives CISOs concrete data when reporting risks to their boards and when evaluating whether vendors meet security requirements.

For organizations without dedicated security teams to act on this intelligence, MAX Managed Services provides a comprehensive solution. Our 24/7 Vendor Risk Operations Center continuously monitors your supply chain, investigates findings on the dark web, and collaborates directly with your vendors to resolve potential threats before they escalate into breaches.

Access isn’t the challenge, context is

The challenge lies in knowing where to look, understanding what you’re seeing, and acting on that intelligence before threats materialize. Surface web search engines won’t help you here. Even specialized dark web search engines only index a fraction of available content and lack the context needed to assess risks to users of your network.

Legitimate uses security teams should understand

Not every dark web browser user has malicious intent. Security researchers use these tools to investigate cybersecurity threats without revealing their affiliations. Journalists protect sources by communicating through encrypted channels. Organizations in highly regulated industries use similar technology for secure communication with partners.

Understanding legitimate content on these networks helps security teams distinguish between benign online activity and actual threats. When your threat intelligence platform flags an employee accessing dark web sites, context matters. Security teams need to differentiate between authorized research and unauthorized activity.

Practical steps for security leaders

Your security program should include dark web monitoring as part of comprehensive threat intelligence. This doesn’t require every security analyst to start using special browsers and manually searching dark web websites. That approach doesn’t scale and misses critical intelligence.

Instead, partner with vendors who maintain persistent visibility into these networks. Look for capabilities that go beyond simple credit file monitoring. Effective platforms should detect a wide range of threats, from exposed credentials to active planning of attacks.

Integration matters too. Dark web intelligence becomes more valuable when it connects to your existing risk management workflows. When our platform detects that your vendor’s credentials have been compromised, the information automatically updates their security rating and triggers remediation workflows.

For resource-constrained organizations, MAX Managed Services handle the entire dark web monitoring program. Our experts analyze findings, prioritize threats based on incident likelihood, and engage directly with your vendors to drive remediation. This gives you enterprise-grade threat intelligence without building an internal team.

Also consider how this intelligence supports compliance requirements. Regulators increasingly expect organizations to monitor for indicators that their data has been exposed. Dark web surveillance helps demonstrate you’re actively managing third-party risks.

Moving forward

The dark web isn’t going away. As security controls on the surface web improve, more malicious activity migrates to these hidden networks. Traditional browsers can’t protect you from threats you can’t see. Popular search engines won’t alert you when your data appears for sale.

We built our threat intelligence platform specifically to close this visibility gap. Our monitoring goes beyond passive observation. We actively analyze dark web activity to predict which threats will impact our customers next.

Organizations that prioritize third-party risk management understand they’re only as secure as their least protected vendor. When those vendors’ credentials surface on darknet markets, when threat actors identify software vulnerabilities in your supply chain, you need to know immediately.

Learn more about threat intelligence

Request a demo to see how our platform transforms dark web intelligence into actionable security improvements. Don’t wait until your data appears in criminal marketplaces. Establish visibility into these threats today.