It is relatively common for non-technical individuals to confuse the Dark Web for the Dark Net. Although there are some similarities and connections between the two, they are fundamentally different at their core. The Dark Net is part of the deeper Dark Web. However, to better understand the concepts of the Dark Web, we will first have to get to know its twin brother, the surface web, and how the internet works. The internet is essentially a collection of computer systems, also known as servers. Each one of these servers has a unique internet protocol or I.P. address assigned to them. When a person types in a website address, the web browsers automatically query a service called the Domain Name Service, or DNS for short. The DNS will then find and convert the provided website address into its corresponding I.P. address and return those findings back to the browsers.

Thus, we can see the DNS as the phonebook of the internet. However, the DNS has its limitations; it only contains the list of I.P. addresses known to the general public. The servers that were not publicly documented on a DNS are primarily servers not designed or suitable for the general public’s access. Some good examples of such servers are hospitals’ patient medical record servers or transactional processing servers from the banks. These private servers are often considered as the Dark Web or Deep Web. On the other hand, the servers that are easily found via a simple search engine query, publicly accessible by typing in a web address, or listed on a public DNS can be considered the surface web.

The Dark Net, however, is an entirely different realm of species. The Dark Net is also a collection of computer systems. However, instead of being publically accessible and legally accounted for, it requires a particular program called the “TOR Browser,” also known as The Onion Browser, to access its contents. And because it is not legally accounted for and its users are often anonymous, it created an incubation bed for many nefarious and malevolent actors to commit severe crimes. As a result, the Dark Net is widely known for illegal drug dealings, sex trafficking, hitmen, and other exceedingly heinous crimes unimaginable. Although, various prosecuted journalists around the world also use it to advocate free speech.

Additionally, as crazy as it sounds, the TOR browser was initially designed by the U.S Naval Research Lab, a U.S government entity, in the 1990s (The TOR Project The Tor Project: Privacy & Freedom Online). The TOR project also stated in its 2013 financial disclosures that it had received more than 1.8 million dollars of support from the U.S government for its continued existent and developments (Hern US government increases funding for TOR, giving $1.8M in 2013). And despite the numerous law enforcement crackdowns of illicit activities on the Dark Net in recent years, there are still a lot of bad actors on this platform that needs to be stopped. The Dark Net is definitely one of the most under-regulated realms that deserve international law enforcement agencies’ attention.

Works Cited

The TOR Project. “The Tor Project: Privacy & Freedom Online.” Tor Project, https://www.torproject.org/about/history/.

Hern, Alex. “U.S. Government Increases Funding for TOR, Giving $1.8M in 2013.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 29 July 2014, https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jul/29/us-government-funding-tor-18m-onion-router.