The Dark Web
The Dark Web(also called The Dark Net) is a network within the Internet which is only accessible using certain software and protocols.
The Dark Web has many names, for example Tor Network or Onion Router.
Anyone can access to the Dark Web by simply downloading software for it. A popular and very much used browser is the Tor Project's Tor Browser
This is just like any other browser such as Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge, except it can also access special website addresses which ends in .onion instead of .com and such.
Any traffic sent through Tor Browser is automatically anonymized and encrypted via many different hosts. The browser also has built-in protection for many kinds of tracking and de-anonymization features.
Accessing The Dark Web
You can access many fun and interesting websites through this browser, also many which co-exist on the regular Internet. For example if you access the following URL's in Tor Browser, your communications will be fully encrypted and anonymized inside the Dark Web:
- Facebook http://www.facebookcorewwwi.onion/
- DuckDuckGo Search Engine http://3g2upl4pq6kufc4m.onion/
- The American CIA ("Central Intelligence Agency") http://ciadotgov4sjwlzihbbgxnqg3xiyrg7so2r2o3lt5wz5ypk4sxyjstad.onion
- The Hidden Wiki, a collection of links and places to explore http://zqktlwiuavvvqqt4ybvgvi7tyo4hjl5xgfuvpdf6otjiycgwqbym2qad.onion/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
Because of the built-in anonymizing features and encryption, the Dark Net is also host of many criminal websites, marketplaces and networks.
Note: Please take care when navigating the Dark Net. The links above will only work when using the appropriate software.
