Bitcoin: Sex, violence, drugs, and all your ambitions and desires on the dark web (Part 1)

I'll do anything for money. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a chicken. If you ask me to destroy a business or ruin a life, I'll gladly oblige.

This is a monologue from a hacker who rents out his hacking skills. He charges 200 euros to hack into a person's email account, and only 500 euros to destroy a person's reputation. The post was able to be blatantly displayed because it was on the dark web. The world of the dark web is isolated from the standard Internet and search engines, and ordinary people like you and me may never see it.

In the dark web world, this is considered the lightest deal.

[A post on the dark web by a hacker soliciting business]

The existence of the dark web is not news. Those who know about it are fascinated by the freedom and debauchery here; those who don’t know about it may never step into this door in their lifetime.

As described in Eyes Wide Shut, the last work of the film master Kubrick, no matter whether you are prominent or ordinary, you must wear a mask from the moment you enter the castle. The replica of this castle in the online world is the dark web. Even if you know how to "scientifically surf the Internet", you will never find any trace of those websites in the dark web using engines such as Google and Baidu. To enter this world, you need a special "passport" and your browser needs to learn another "language". Because once you step into these "dark rooms", your appearance, identity, status, geographical location, contact information, morality and bottom line will all collapse into one word - anonymous.

Tor (The Onion Router) is the most popular anonymous network access technology. The user's request will randomly jump three times among hosts distributed around the world before finally reaching the server, which makes it extremely difficult to trace the source, making all visitors completely identityless. Most dark webs are built on this technology.

In layman's terms, you enter a naked world where the only thing you need to cover is your face. If you have already put on your mask, then welcome to this land full of "imagination".

Dirty market

When do people need perfect anonymity? Take a look at the goods sold by "e-commerce" on the dark web, and you may have the answer.

[Counterfeit US dollars sold in dark web "stores"]

Stores selling counterfeit money, guns, and drugs are everywhere. And each store only sells one type of merchandise, which can be described as "specialized and specialized."

• For only US$5,900, you can get a full set of documents including a US passport, ID card, driver's license, etc.

  
  

• A fake British passport costs £2,000. The seller even promises to add your personal information to an official database, ensuring that your passport can travel around the world.

  
  

• A Desert Eagle pistol costs 1,450 euros. Of course, you may also need to spend 45 euros to buy 50 rounds of ammunition.

  
  

• A fresh user's credit card information (account, password, CVV code) costs $14. You can use it to spend as you like.

  
  

• If you are "short of money", you can buy counterfeit bills at half the price.

For reasons you understand, all transactions are converted to BTC (Bitcoin). Since Bitcoin is very valuable, a $14 credit card is only equivalent to 0.04141413 BTC. A counterfeit bill with a face value of $2,000 only requires 5.535 BTC. Like Taobao, most sellers will emphasize: "Direct shipping from the UK/US, free shipping, dear"; similar to Taobao, some stores also have some user reviews on their message boards. Unlike Taobao, there is no payment platform such as Alipay that is responsible for the reputation of both parties. There are all kinds of transaction methods, but the iron rule of "pay first, then ship" is non-negotiable; unlike Taobao, there is no Wangwang here for buyers and sellers to haggle. Purchase consultations are often made through confidential email addresses published on the website, and some sellers will add a sentence after the email address: "Don't ask stupid questions, we will ignore them directly."

[Pistols sold in the dark web market]

In this dark forest where the law is blocked, the balance of transactions often becomes tilted. If you type "scam" in a search engine dedicated to the dark web, you will see forum posts that specifically list "scam websites." Some people even open posts to share their experiences of being deceived so that later generations can avoid being deceived. Among these various "stores," it is unknown how many stores have done how many transactions, and who has gained how much profit from them. However, the endless emergence of dark web stores, and even their prosperity and spread, provide ironclad evidence for certain assertions.

Torshop is a service provider that builds websites for dark web e-commerce. Many merchants have a note at the bottom of their webpages: "Powered by Torshop". Torshop's "official website" also constantly updates the addresses of "cooperating e-commerce companies" and uses its own credit to guarantee that the e-commerce companies on the list are not scammers. Leifeng.com reporters saw that there are dozens of merchants "registered" on it, and people are constantly entering and leaving the list, continuously updating this dark list.

Apple devices are favored by dark web stores

The goods sold on the dark web may be illegal items that an ordinary person will never come into contact with in his life, but there is a type of product that is most commonly used in people's daily lives. That is electronic products such as iPhones and other Apple devices. There are many dark web e-commerce companies that mainly sell electronic products. The web pages are exquisite and the prices are reasonable. The price of an iPhone is often 40% to 60% of the official price, which is cheaper than the parallel import price you find on Chinese e-commerce.

If you study carefully, you will find that most of the merchants on the dark web are very "nice". For example, they will explain to you why the iPhone is so cheap on the page:

• We obtained a lot of credit card information through illegal channels, but the money cannot be withdrawn. We must use these cards to shop and then sell these things to cash in. So iPhone is the best choice.

• Don't worry, the iPhone will not be mailed directly to your home, but will be mailed to our address first, and then we will ship it to you, so you are absolutely safe.

This just explains the use of credit card information, and an industry chain of purchasing information and selling stolen goods for cash has gradually been uncovered. However, the iron rule of paying first and then receiving the goods remains irrefutable. In the dark forest of the dark web, if a scammer wants to cheat you of your money, I believe this is the most convincing reason he can think of.

Silk Road and the “Darknet Tycoons”

Who is behind the web pages that flash with desires and keep this cruel system running? The burly gangsters with elaborate costumes? The "godfathers" in suits and leather shoes who look intimidating without even getting angry? Or the slovenly hippies who look down on everyone?

The most prominent reputation of the dark web in the real world is probably created by the "Silk Road". If you haven't heard of it, then this website with a green camel caravan as its logo will make all your romantic imaginations about this ancient trade route go to pieces. Drugs are the most famous commodities on this trading platform, and its categories are so detailed that it is jaw-dropping. Among the nine categories, eight are drugs, hallucinogens and prescription drugs. There are 5-6 subcategories under each category, and each subcategory has hundreds of suppliers. Other transactions such as credit card information and 0-Day vulnerabilities are uniformly allocated in the "other" column.

The story of the Silk Road can even be written into a book as thick as the Lord of the Rings trilogy, corresponding to the Silk Road 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 eras. Yes, this hidden world has quietly experienced countless "tribulations".

【Ulbricht, the founder of the Silk Road】

Ulbricht is the founder of Silk Road, a veritable "dark web tycoon". This big boy who looks as bright as the California sun has two identities: a cold-blooded drug addict and a liberal philosopher. His genius in mathematics and natural sciences allows him to create everything he needs, including drugs and the "Silk Road" platform. In 2010, he announced on LinkedIn that he would "build an economic simulation to allow people to experience life in a world without systemic forces." Undoubtedly, systemic forces refer to "police and law." After that, he disappeared from the normal network. He sold his own "psychedelic mushrooms" on the "Silk Road" and attracted a large number of drug dealers and addicts by relying on his good "credit".

Within a few days of launching the site, I had my first sign-ups, and then I got my first messages. I was so excited. Gradually people started signing up, sellers signed up, and then my first order came in, and I'll never forget it. Over the next few months I sold about ten pounds of psychedelic mushrooms through the site.

Ulbricht wrote in his diary.

The entire plan was known only to his old college friend Bates and his girlfriend. The following plot is a standard Hollywood blockbuster. Ulbricht's business is booming, and the FBI follows the logistics to track down the five "employees" of the "Silk Road" who attempt to ask for hush money, leading Ulbricht to hire someone to kill them. The FBI deceives Ulbricht into becoming an "employee", and his old friend Bates chooses to betray him under heavy pressure.

After Ulbricht surfaced from the dark web, there were two moments that left a deep impression on people:

1. In a library near Ulbricht's simple residence, he was chatting on the computer with an FBI "employee" in disguise. Two agents pretending to be passers-by suddenly quarreled behind him. The moment he turned around, he was pinned to the ground by another agent, and he never touched his computer again. If he had been one second later and had the opportunity to turn off the computer, perhaps all the evidence against him would have been lost.

2. During the trial, he repeated the declaration he had made online countless times: "Silk Road is far more than just buying and selling drugs. It is about taking back our freedom, our dignity and the pursuit of justice." Then he listened calmly to the guilty verdict, turned to his haggard parents and his supporters sitting in the seats, and smiled indifferently.

[Ulbricht's account is shown on the computer that he was unable to shut down when he was arrested]

The amazing and terrifying thing about the dark web is its strong self-healing ability. In October 2013, Ulbricht was arrested, and just one month later, "Silk Road 2.0" was launched. The creator called himself "Defcon" and used the strong brand appeal to instantly reorganize the scattered drug army. The FBI repeated the same trick, and the agent successfully gained Defcon's trust and earned a salary equivalent to $32,000 in Bitcoin. In 2014, Defcon was arrested. His real identity was Bent Hall, a former SpaceX employee, rocket expert and Bitcoin fanatic.

Just when the FBI spokesperson said righteously that "those hiding behind the keyboard will eventually be found", Silk Road 3.0 was launched with the slogan: "The King Returns."

It turns out that in addition to changing the version number of Silk Road, the most important work of the FBI is to prove that the dark web is not an impenetrable safe haven.

【Silk Road 3.0】

A paradise for vulnerabilities that change the world

Even if you are a law-abiding citizen and have no idea of ​​the existence of this ghost network, the impact of the dark web on your life is far beyond your imagination.

Earlier, the famous cyber arms dealer HackingTeam was hacked, proving that its large number of vulnerability acquisitions and cyber arms transactions were conducted through the dark web. Among HackingTeam's customers, there are government agencies in many countries who purchase cyber arms to safeguard their own national interests. Whether these arms are used for just causes or evil activities depends on your nationality and political attitude.

According to some data, South Korea and Kazakhstan have used these cyber weapons to attack China. For the citizens of these two countries, the dark web has played a great role in defending their national interests. In cyber warfare, no country can be immune. According to industry insiders, vulnerabilities are an important cyber weapon resource for a country, and each country is actively stockpiling them. In the flow of these resources, the dark web appears from time to time.

[ISIS video website on the dark web]

It turns out that the dark web has played an important role in some major events that have affected the world.

• During the Arab Spring, Egyptian revolutionaries successfully evaded government tracking by connecting with each other on the dark web, which ultimately led to Mubarak's resignation.

• Almost all of the websites of the terrorist organization ISIS are built on the dark web to avoid attacks and continue to recruit members. The main battlefield of the war between the "Anonymous" organization and ISIS, which declared war on it, is also on the dark web.

Vulnerability trading also plays an important role in commercial competition. On the dark web, almost every large trading website has a "special zone" for vulnerability trading, the so-called "H/P/A/W/V/C": Hack, Phreak, Anarchy, Warez, Virus, Crack (hacker, eavesdropping, anarchy, piracy, virus, cracking)

[Hacking technology and vulnerability transactions on the dark web]

Yu Xian, VP of technology at Knowsec, once told Leifeng.com:

If you submit a fatal Windows 10 vulnerability to Microsoft, you may get tens of thousands of dollars. If you trade it on the black market, you can get several times, dozens of times, or even hundreds of times the profit. Putting aside the moral factors, a rational hacker will definitely trade the vulnerabilities in his hands on the black market.

Refer to the article on Leifeng.com: "Knowledge Chuangyu Yuxian - "Vulnerability Trading" in the Sunlight"

Gao Xuefeng, head of 360's Nirvana team that focuses on iOS vulnerability research, said:

"According to the data leaked by HackingTeam, the transaction price of an ordinary vulnerability is about 35,000 to 45,000 US dollars. If it is sold exclusively to Hacking Team, the price will at least triple. The transaction price of a valuable iOS vulnerability may be hundreds of thousands of US dollars."

Refer to the Leifeng.com article: "Nirvana Team Leader Gao Xuefeng: How much is an iOS vulnerability worth"

Obviously, these high-priced vulnerabilities were used by the buyers where they thought they could generate greater value. Wan Tao, known as the "Godfather of Chinese Hackers", once said that truly advanced hackers would never let others know of their existence, because they never fail. If we follow this view, people cannot even disprove it, because some vulnerabilities have quietly changed the direction of many events with the help of the spread of dark web.

Next episode preview:

Sex, violence, drugs, and all your ambitions and desires on the dark web (Part 2)

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