暗网(dark web)以危险着称：非法内容(illicit content)、黑客、数据转储等等。但是暗网上(dark web)的内容可能会让您大吃一惊。不全是黑市交易和身份被盗。
这引起了你的兴趣吗？继续阅读以了解您会在暗网上找到什么——以及(dark web—and)它是否值得一游。
什么是暗网？
暗网(dark web)是互联网的一小部分，没有被搜索引擎索引。您无法使用常规互联网浏览器访问它，例如Google Chrome 或 Microsoft Edge(Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge)。暗网使用单个节点的网络(The dark web uses a network of individual nodes)和强大的加密来保护网络上的数据。
加密的强度和在暗网上跟踪在线活动的难度使其成为各种恶意和危险活动的完美在线位置(online location)。除了坏的，在暗网上也可以找到好的（或至少是安全的）。
一些主要网站也运营暗网版本，例如Facebook、BBC和ProPublica。像这样的网站允许用户访问服务而不会遇到审查，在访问可能受限的信息时保护用户身份。
要了解更多信息，包括如何访问暗网(dark web)，请查看我们的暗网导航快速指南(our quick guide to navigating the dark web)。
暗网与。深网
一个常见的误解是暗网(dark web)与深网相同。深层网络是指无法从搜索引擎(search engine)访问的任何东西。虽然这听起来像是暗网(dark web)，但还是有区别的。深网指的是隐藏的信息，例如医疗记录、仅限会员的网站、机密数据等。
暗网(dark web)是您通过特殊浏览器访问的深网的子集，而您每天使用的互联网被称为“明网”。
暗网上有什么？
暗网上的内容涵盖了几个关键领域：
- 透明网站的暗(Dark)网版本
- 非法或极端主义内容
- 暗网市场
- 黑客和其他类似论坛
- 安全和匿名托管
- 加密货币相关服务
- 游戏、社交媒体(Social Media)、音乐(Music)、下载(Downloads)等
每个区域也包含几个小节。
(Dark Web Versions)透明网站的暗网版本(Net)
如上所述，一些主要的清洁网站也维护着一个黑暗的网站(web site)。这是为了确保生活在限制性政府下的人们仍然可以访问未经审查的新闻、社交媒体或其他重要的在线服务。
非法或极端主义内容
由于暗网使得追踪个人用户的身份和托管在其上的网站极其困难，因此许多极端内容都被托管在那里。极端内容的范围涵盖了许多你能想象到的最恶劣的内容形式（儿童色情、恐怖主义暴力、虐待动物(animal cruelty)等）。
因此，我们不会讨论暗网上的所有非法和极端主义内容(illicit and extremist content)。
最极端的非法内容形式被锁定在私人论坛中。但是你不应该去寻找你不想找到答案的事情。
暗网市场
暗网(Darknet)市场就像暗网中的(dark web)亚马逊(Amazon)，但主要涉及非法毒品的销售。暗网(Darknet)市场吸引了当局的大量关注。最初的暗网市场(darknet market)丝绸之路(Silk Road)臭名昭著。它的创建者Ross Ulbricht目前因在(Ross Ulbricht)网站(site takedown)被删除后被定罪而被判处双重无期徒刑。
从那时起，出现了更多的暗网市场(darknet market)。每次当局取缔一个暗网市场(darknet market)，都会导致一系列高调的逮捕。然而，每一次，都会出现另一串暗网市场(darknet market)来吸引用户并继续工作。
别(Make)搞错了。暗网(Darknet)市场是危险的。
黑客和其他类似论坛
暗网(dark web)对所有类型的黑客都很有吸引力。您可能听说过关于雇佣杀手和DDOS服务的故事。(DDOS)真相介于两者之间。有地下黑客论坛出售私人数据、恶意软件、信用卡(credit card)详细信息、个人识别信息(identifying information)等等。
同样，这些黑客论坛听起来很有趣，但到处都是以诈骗和谎言为生的人。
除此之外，许多黑客论坛只接受邀请，并要求您认识现有成员。现有成员可能也必须为您担保。
安全和匿名托管
安全和匿名的托管使暗网保持运转(web ticking)。暗网上的绝大多数网站都需要完全的隐私。这意味着要找到一个不关心网站内容、位于安全司法管辖区（具有严格或不存在的数据隐私法且没有引渡条约）的(secure jurisdiction)网站主机(website host)，并且如果当局来，不会将密钥交给服务器打电话。
这种组合允许安全和匿名的托管服务提供商声称他们不知道网站上的内容，因此不承担任何责任。
很少有真正安全和匿名的托管服务。那些确实存在并证明它们是安全的通常有成千上万的客户。然而，这给暗网和这些服务的用户带来了不同的风险：黑客。
2020 年初，暗网上(dark web)最大的免费网络托管服务商Daniel's Hosting在 16 个月内第二次遭到黑客攻击。黑客使 7,600 个暗网(dark web)门户下线，删除了整个 Daniel's Hosting 后端和数据库(Hosting backend and database)。网站主机可以转移到其他地方，但就像暗网市场一样，它可以成为数字打地鼠游戏。
加密货币相关服务
比特币(Bitcoin)是暗网的货币。一些供应商接受其他较小的加密货币，例如门罗币(Monero)，但在大多数情况下，比特币(Bitcoin)占据主导地位。作为一种伪匿名数字货币，比特币(Bitcoin)与暗网服务所需的隐私和匿名(privacy and anonymity)理念相关联。
还有其他比特币(Bitcoin)服务。例如，你会发现比特币(Bitcoin)翻滚服务试图切断比特币(Bitcoin)的数字交易历史(transaction history)与用户之间的联系，从而进一步提高匿名性(boosting anonymity)。还有无数的加密货币赌博门户网站，它们可能会欺骗你，而且只是彻头彻尾的骗局，可以免费将你的比特币(Bitcoin)持有量翻倍或三倍。
游戏、社交媒体(Social Media)、音乐(Music)、下载(Downloads)、聊天室(Chat Rooms)等
黑暗的网络并不(dark web isn)全是厄运和悲观(doom and gloom)。
多年来，出现了多种暗网社交媒体服务。这些服务包括TorBook （以(TorBook)Tor 网络(Tor network)命名）、Blackbook、TapIIN等的多个化身。困难在于保持匿名的暗网社交媒体网络存在。(network presence)此外，该网站可能会在一夜之间消失，从而永久锁定您的帐户。
您还会发现提供音乐、软件、游戏等下载的黑暗网站。大部分可供下载的内容是盗版材料，下载是非法的。
还有一些暗网搜索(web search)引擎，例如Torch，可让您搜索某些类型的暗网内容(web content)。但是，您不会总是得到您期望的搜索结果，因为暗网(dark web doesn)不像明网那样索引，而且许多网站不希望您找到它们。
最后，您会发现由普通人创建的网站来测试他们的编程技能，或者只是出于个人兴趣。如果这听起来像您，请查看如何在 Tor 上创建您自己的洋葱站点(how to create your own onion site on Tor)。
暗网安全吗？
尽管您刚刚阅读了所有内容，但暗网(dark web)还是相当安全的。如果你找麻烦，你会找到的。如果您坚持使用众所周知的黑暗(dark web)网站并且不点击您看到的每个链接，您应该保持安全。Tor 浏览器(Tor browser)禁用了几个跟踪器和脚本，这提高了您的安全性——但您不应该认为这种额外的安全性是理所当然的。
如果您要探索暗网(dark web)，则需要适当的安全性。在访问暗网(dark web)之前，请查看最好的防病毒和恶意软件扫描程序(antivirus and malware scanners)以删除任何病毒。
A Guide To What Is On The Dark Web
The dark web carrіes a strong reputatіon for danger: illicit content, hackers, data dumps, and more. But what is on the dark web might surpriѕe you. It isn’t all black market dealings and stolen identities.
Has that piqued your interest? Read on to find out what you’ll find on the dark web—and if it’s worth visiting at all.
What Is The Dark Web?
The dark web is a small part of the internet that isn’t indexed by search engines. You can’t access it using regular internet browsers, such as Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge. The dark web uses a network of individual nodes and strong encryption to protect data on the network.
The strength of the encryption and the difficulty of tracking online activity on the dark web make it the perfect online location for all manner of malicious and dangerous activities. As well as the bad, there is also good (or at least, safe) to be found on the dark web.
Some major websites also operate dark web versions, such as Facebook, the BBC, and ProPublica. Sites like these let users access services without running into censorship, protecting user identity while visiting potentially restricted information.
To find out more, including how to access the dark web, check out our quick guide to navigating the dark web.
Dark Web Vs. Deep Web
A common misconception is that the dark web is the same as the deep web. The deep web refers to anything that isn’t accessible from a search engine. Although this sounds like the dark web, there’s a difference. The deep web refers to hidden information such as medical records, membership-only sites, confidential data, and so on.
The dark web is a subset of the deep web that you access through a special browser, while the internet that you use every day is known as the “clear net.”
What Is On The Dark Web?
Content on the dark web covers a few key areas:
- Dark web versions of clear net sites
- Illicit or extremist content
- Darknet markets
- Hacking and other similar forums
- Secure and anonymous hosting
- Cryptocurrency related services
- Games, Social Media, Music, Downloads, and More
Each area contains several subsections, too.
Dark Web Versions Of Clear Net Sites
As mentioned above, some major clean net sites also maintain a dark web site. This is to make sure people living under restrictive governments can still access uncensored news, social media, or other important online services.
Illicit Or Extremist Content
As the dark web makes tracing the identity of individual users and the websites hosted upon it extremely difficult, a lot of extreme content takes host there. The range of extreme content covers many of the worst forms of content you can imagine (child pornography, terrorist violence, animal cruelty, and so on).
As such, we will not discuss the full range of illicit and extremist content on the dark web.
The most extreme forms of illicit content are locked in private forums. But you should not go looking for things you do not want to find the answer for.
Darknet Markets
Darknet markets are like the Amazon of the dark web, but are primarily involved in the sale of illegal drugs. Darknet markets attract a lot of attention from the authorities. The original darknet market, the Silk Road, is infamous. Its creator, Ross Ulbricht, is currently serving a double-life sentence for his conviction following the site takedown.
There have been many more darknet markets since that time. Each time the authorities take down a darknet market, it leads to a string of high-profile arrests. Yet each time, another string of darknet markets pop up to hoover up the users and continue working.
Make no mistake. Darknet marketplaces are dangerous.
Hacking And Other Similar Forums
The dark web is attractive to all types of hackers. You’ve probably heard the tales of hitmen and DDOS services for hire. The truth lies somewhere in-between. There are underground hacking forums where private data, malware, credit card details, personal identifying information, and much more are for sale.
Again, these hacking forums sound intriguing but are filled with people who scam and lie for a living.
Adding to this, many hacking forums are invite only and require you to know an existing member. The existing member may have to vouch for you, too.
Secure And Anonymous Hosting
Secure and anonymous hosting keeps the dark web ticking. The overwhelming majority of websites on the dark web demand total privacy. That means finding a website host that doesn’t care about website content, is based in a secure jurisdiction (with strong or non-existent data privacy laws and no extradition treaties), and will not hand over keys to the servers if the authorities come calling.
The combination allows secure and anonymous hosting providers to claim that they do not know what is on the websites, and therefore cannot be held responsible.
There are few truly secure and anonymous hosting services. Those that do exist and prove that they are secure typically have thousands of clients. However, this poses a different risk to dark web sites and users of those services: hackers.
In early 2020, Daniel’s Hosting, the largest free web hosting provider on the dark web, was hacked for the second time in 16 months. The hacker took 7,600 dark web portals offline, deleting the entire Daniel’s Hosting backend and database. Website hosts can move elsewhere, but like the darknet markets, it can become a game of digital whack-a-mole.
Cryptocurrency-Related Services
Bitcoin is the currency of the dark web. Some vendors accept other smaller cryptocurrencies, such as Monero, but for the most part, Bitcoin rules the roost. As a pseudo-anonymous digital currency, Bitcoin ties into the idea of privacy and anonymity that dark web services require.
There are other Bitcoin services, too. For example, you can find Bitcoin tumbling services which attempt to sever the link between Bitcoin’s digital transaction history and the user, further boosting anonymity. There are also countless cryptocurrency gambling portals, which may scam you, and just outright scams offering to double or triple your Bitcoin holdings for nothing.
Games, Social Media, Music, Downloads, Chat Rooms, and More
The dark web isn’t all doom and gloom.
Throughout the years, there have been multiple dark web social media services. These services include multiple incarnations of TorBook (named after the Tor network), Blackbook, TapIIN, and many others. The difficulty is maintaining a dark web social media network presence that remains anonymous. Furthermore, there is the ever-present issue that the site might disappear overnight, leaving you locked out of your account permanently.
You’ll also find dark web sites offering downloads of music, software, games, and much more. Most of the content available to download is pirated material, which is illegal to download.
There are also dark web search engines, like Torch, that allow you to search for some types of dark web content. You won’t always get the search results you expect, however, as the dark web doesn’t index like the clear net and many websites don’t want you to find them.
Finally, you’ll find sites created by regular people to test their programming skills, or just out of personal interest. If that sounds like you, check out how to create your own onion site on Tor.
Is The Dark Web Safe?
Despite everything you’ve just read, the dark web is fairly safe. If you look for trouble, you will find it. If you stick to dark web sites that are well known and do not click every link you see, you should remain secure. The Tor browser disables several trackers and scripts, which increases your security—but you shouldn’t take that extra security for granted.
If you are going to explore the dark web, you need proper security. Before accessing the dark web, check out the best antivirus and malware scanners to remove any virus.
