Md Hafez | Published: March 20, 2020 20:36:23 | Updated: March 20, 2020 20:37:54
The Internet refers to the global system of interconnected computer networks that use the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to link devices worldwide. It has brought massive revolution in our communication system and made our life easier. In almost everything we do, we use the Internet ordering a T-shirt, buying a mobile phone, sharing a moment with a friend, sending a picture over instant messaging. Before the Internet, if we wanted to keep up with the news, we had to walk down to the newsstand when it opened in the morning. But today a single click is enough to read local paper and any news source from anywhere in the world, updated up to the minute. According to Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), the total number of Internet subscribers has reached 165.615 million at the end of January, 2020 from 157.544 million at the end of January, 2019.
At a first glance, the internet may seem like a cyber haven for the common people but reality is entirely different. Actually, it works as a double-edged sword, where the opportunity cost of convenience is cascading threats of cyber crimes; around 2,044 cases were filed with different police stations and the cyber tribunal over last six years, according to Cyber Tribunal (Bangladesh) data but the number of cybercrime cases was only three in 2013. Therefore, it is a high time to thoroughly understand this cyber world, spotlighting the cautionary tales.
The internet has three main parts namely surface web, deep web, and dark web. The surface web makes up about 10% of the whole internet, and includes anything that anyone can find by entering terms in a search engine like Google or Yahoo. The deep web is simply where information is stored that is not easily accessible by anyone. This includes anything that is protected by a password such as personal email, online banking, or other such sites. This section actually makes up the majority of the web. The dark web, a subset of deep web, is anything that is not accessible by standard browsers like Google Chrome or Firefox. Any type of information can reside on the dark web, it's merely dark because of its more limited accessibility.
The dark web attracts users who seek anonymity when conducting business. Motives of such anonymity can be noble, such as with journalists seeking to interview citizens of repressive countries, where communications are monitored. Contrarily, the anonymity of the dark web attracts criminal actors like drug-dealers, hackers, and child pornography peddlers. There is also a growing service economy within the dark web in which hit-men and other illegal operatives advertise their services in ways they could not do over conventional channels. These aspects should be enough for law enforcement agencies in Bangladesh, especially Counter-terrorism and Transnational Crime unit, to seriously keep an eye out on what's happening on the Dark Web. Any negligence would be the serious blunder.
People who are unaware about the mysterious Dark Web may think that complicated coding procedure is required to enter the dark web. Getting to the dark web is actually a lot easier than we might think. It's simply done by downloading a special software named as TOR browser (The Onion Router) which is totally free of cost. The dark web site is different from other website in terms of top level domain suffix. For example, the normal web site address ends with .com or .org but dark web address ends with .onion. 'TOR" servers are undetectable from search engines and offer users complete anonymity while surfing the web. These more secured features of anonymity in dark web attract criminals to perform commit crimes frequently. The dark web has flourished by bitcoin, the crypto-currency that enables two parties to conduct a trusted transaction without knowing each other's identity.
Surprisingly, 23 October, 2019, the BBC launched an .onion version (bbcnewsv2vjtpsuy.onion) of its news website on the TOR anonymizing network aimed at readers based in countries that ban its services. In October 2014, Facebook announced that users could connect to the website through a TOR onion service using the privacy-protecting TOR browser and encrypted using HTTPS. Now anyone with a TOR-enabled internet browser can visit https://facebookcorewwwi.onion/ to get a secure connection to Facebook's servers that provides end-to-end encryption. Ideally, this means that TOR users, some of whom may be using the software to circumvent government restrictions of the internet in places such as China, Iran, will be able to get onto Facebook reliably and without worrying about leaking their identifying information. For instance, if you open a Facebook account from Bangladesh using "facebookcorewwwi.onion"- it can appear that you're in U.S.A. Thus, it will create a safe cyber heaven for hackers and crackers who can fulfill their evil interests.
In Bangladesh, everyday many teenagers are victimized by a group of hackers who use TOR server to hack Facebook account and start blackmailing in different ways. The victims don't get help from the law enforcement agencies because they can't identify hackers. Therefore, it is a right time to take initiatives by law enforcement agencies in Bangladesh to increase surveillance on what is happening on the dark web. Otherwise, militants, terrorists, fundamentalist groups and hackers come back strongly which will be out of control.
Md. Hafez is Assistant Professor, at the School of Business, Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology, Email: hafez_du94@hotmail.com
See the rest here:
Dark Web A cyber heaven of criminal activity - The Financial Express BD
- Tor - Official Site - April 26th, 2014 [April 26th, 2014]
- Tor Browser (M-S0FT) - Video - April 26th, 2014 [April 26th, 2014]
- Downloading torrents in utorrent using tor browser - Video - April 27th, 2014 [April 27th, 2014]
- Tor Browser installieren [Tutorial deutsch] - Video - May 1st, 2014 [May 1st, 2014]
- TOR BROWSER KURULUM+KULLANIM - Video - May 1st, 2014 [May 1st, 2014]
- tor browser descargar e instalar - Video - May 1st, 2014 [May 1st, 2014]
- Entering the Deep Web-Deep Web Url link (2014) - Video - May 6th, 2014 [May 6th, 2014]
- Red Onion Tor Browser for iPhone - Video - May 10th, 2014 [May 10th, 2014]
- working referral link to agora hidden market place -new url ( onion site ) - Video - May 12th, 2014 [May 12th, 2014]
- Tor Browser Free Download/Install|Free Latest Version|64/32 bit Windows|2014 - Video - May 18th, 2014 [May 18th, 2014]
- how to install TOR Browser On LINUX - Video - May 18th, 2014 [May 18th, 2014]
- Grams Darknet black market search engine demo - Video - May 18th, 2014 [May 18th, 2014]
- How to Install the New Tor Browser in Kali Linux - Video - May 18th, 2014 [May 18th, 2014]
- How to download and use Tor browser [4K] - Video - May 20th, 2014 [May 20th, 2014]
- Free App Lets the Next Snowden Send Big Files Securely and Anonymously - May 22nd, 2014 [May 22nd, 2014]
- How to get free 7 day trials for XBL works as of May 2014 - Video - May 23rd, 2014 [May 23rd, 2014]
- Free Access to Deep Web (HIdden Wikki)(Tor Browser)-free 2014 - Video - May 27th, 2014 [May 27th, 2014]
- Federal Cybersecurity Director Found Guilty on Child Porn Charges - August 31st, 2014 [August 31st, 2014]
- Cybersecurity official uses Tor but still gets caught with child porn - August 31st, 2014 [August 31st, 2014]
- Softonic - Tor Browser - Download - August 31st, 2014 [August 31st, 2014]
- What is the Tor Browser? - Tor Project: Anonymity Online - August 31st, 2014 [August 31st, 2014]
- Tor Browser - Problem Connecting? - August 31st, 2014 [August 31st, 2014]
- Review: Tor Browser Bundle lets you browse in anonymity ... - August 31st, 2014 [August 31st, 2014]
- Guide to using the Tor Browser Bundle for secure communication - Video - August 31st, 2014 [August 31st, 2014]
- Hack-Bypass Hotspot (Mikrotik) With Tor Browser - Video - September 3rd, 2014 [September 3rd, 2014]
- Using tor-browser on ubuntu 14.04 LTS - Video - September 7th, 2014 [September 7th, 2014]
- Download Tor Browser Bundle 3 6 5 For Win, Mac, Linux - Video - September 8th, 2014 [September 8th, 2014]
- Browse Anonymously, Browse Safely - The App Center - September 11th, 2014 [September 11th, 2014]
- Tor browser NOT SAFE without this quick step - Video - September 12th, 2014 [September 12th, 2014]
- Tor Browser for iOS - Free download and software reviews ... - September 14th, 2014 [September 14th, 2014]
- Comcast Denies It Will Cut Off Customers Who Use Tor, The Web Browser For Criminals (CMCSA) - September 15th, 2014 [September 15th, 2014]
- Comcast calls rumor that it disconnects Tor users wildly inaccurate - September 15th, 2014 [September 15th, 2014]
- Why a thinly sourced, unverified report about Comcast has the Web in an uproar - September 16th, 2014 [September 16th, 2014]
- Drier: Is Comcast really blocking anonymous Internet browser Tor? - September 19th, 2014 [September 19th, 2014]
- Guns, drugs and freedom: the great dark net debate - September 19th, 2014 [September 19th, 2014]
- Download and Install Tor Browser Bundle - Video - September 24th, 2014 [September 24th, 2014]
- install tor browser for kali linux 1.0.9 - Video - September 27th, 2014 [September 27th, 2014]
- TOR Browser: Safe to use 2014? - Yahoo Answers - September 28th, 2014 [September 28th, 2014]
- Alex Jones Interviews Creator of TOR Browser- Infowars September 2014 - Video - September 28th, 2014 [September 28th, 2014]
- Tor Executive Director Hints At Firefox Integration - September 30th, 2014 [September 30th, 2014]
- Dreaming of a Tor Button for Firefox - September 30th, 2014 [September 30th, 2014]
- Install tor browser on kali linux - Video - September 30th, 2014 [September 30th, 2014]
- How to install TOR browser bundle on sparkylinux 32bit - Video - September 30th, 2014 [September 30th, 2014]
- Firefox could be adding built-in Tor support for improved private browsing - October 2nd, 2014 [October 2nd, 2014]
- Tor Browser Bundle: Download & Start - Tutorial deutsch - Video - October 3rd, 2014 [October 3rd, 2014]
- With This Tiny Box, You Can Anonymize Everything You Do Online - October 13th, 2014 [October 13th, 2014]
- Tor Browser Cheat TankPit - Video - October 13th, 2014 [October 13th, 2014]
- Anonabox Promises Total Online Anonymity That's Easy, Open Source, and Cheap - October 14th, 2014 [October 14th, 2014]
- This tiny box anonymises all your online actions - October 14th, 2014 [October 14th, 2014]
- Anonabox promises a portable, streamlined way to use Tor to hide your online tracks - October 14th, 2014 [October 14th, 2014]
- Investors flock to tiny device that promises online anonymity - October 16th, 2014 [October 16th, 2014]
- How to run all your Internet's programs thru Tor Browser - Video - October 16th, 2014 [October 16th, 2014]
- Tails 1.2 : Released with Tor Browser 4.0 - Video - October 20th, 2014 [October 20th, 2014]
- Tor Browser 4.0 is released | The Tor Blog - October 25th, 2014 [October 25th, 2014]
- Access Blocked site using Tor Browser and chrome [2014] - Video - October 27th, 2014 [October 27th, 2014]
- Be Anonymous Online : TOR Browser - Video - October 27th, 2014 [October 27th, 2014]
- Menggunakan TOR Browser - Video - October 29th, 2014 [October 29th, 2014]
- Facebook Just Created a Custom Tor Link and That's Awesome - October 31st, 2014 [October 31st, 2014]
- How to Use Deep Web Using Tor Browser - Video - October 31st, 2014 [October 31st, 2014]
- Setup Tor Browser on Mac OS 10 - Video - October 31st, 2014 [October 31st, 2014]
- Facebook opens up to Tor users with new secure .onion address - November 1st, 2014 [November 1st, 2014]
- How to use the Tor browser and the Open PGP applet - Video - November 1st, 2014 [November 1st, 2014]
- Facebookcorewwwi.onion ( Preview ) - Video - November 2nd, 2014 [November 2nd, 2014]
- How to use Tor for Facebook (Windows, Mac & Linux) - November 4th, 2014 [November 4th, 2014]
- Tor Browser Bundle - Secure your Web surfing - [Free Download] - Video - November 5th, 2014 [November 5th, 2014]
- The Law Scores a Victory Against Dark Net Denizens - November 8th, 2014 [November 8th, 2014]
- Tor Browser New 4 - Video - November 8th, 2014 [November 8th, 2014]
- How to (Install- Enable) Flash Player on Tor Browser - Video - November 9th, 2014 [November 9th, 2014]
- Tor Browser New 2 - Video - November 9th, 2014 [November 9th, 2014]
- Tor Browser New 1 - Video - November 9th, 2014 [November 9th, 2014]
- Developer edition and privacy are Firefoxs 10th birthday present for the world - November 11th, 2014 [November 11th, 2014]
- Easily Install Tor Browser 4.0.1 via PPA in Linux Mint 17 - Video - November 11th, 2014 [November 11th, 2014]
- Better Tor-gether? Mozillla bids to bring anonymous browsing to the masses - November 12th, 2014 [November 12th, 2014]
- How to connect Tor Browser to Country-specific IP Address - Video - November 12th, 2014 [November 12th, 2014]
- A Computer Science Professor Found A Way To Identify Most 'Anonymous' Tor Users - November 19th, 2014 [November 19th, 2014]
- Tor Browser-in Yuklenmesi ve qurulmasi. - Video - November 26th, 2014 [November 26th, 2014]
- | | install tor browser on ubuntu 14 04 - Video - November 29th, 2014 [November 29th, 2014]
- Tor Browser 4.5-alpha-1 is released | The Tor Blog - November 29th, 2014 [November 29th, 2014]
- Como instalar o Tor Browser- Navegador da Deep Web/Annimo - Video - December 5th, 2014 [December 5th, 2014]
- [ExpertProf - THT]Tor Browser Kurulumu Ve Onion'a Girilmesi - Video - December 5th, 2014 [December 5th, 2014]