In essence, the deep web is made up of any content that isn’t available via an internet search engine, as it hasn’t been indexed. While the terms ‘deep web’ and ‘dark web’ are used interchangeably by many, the dark web is, in fact, just a small subset of the deep web - a vast reserve of content that supposedly makes up anything from 96% to 99% of the Internet. However, even the dark web is just a small part of a much larger animal - the deep web. Indeed, technically speaking, any network that requires specific software, system configurations or authorisations to access it could be called a darknet, and it’s these darknets, when taken as a whole, that make up the dark web. Everything from drugs and guns to stolen credit card numbers are yours for the taking if you’re willing to plough the murky depths and blind your conscience, and perhaps that’s why it’s earned itself a bad reputation.īut it’s not all stolen Netflix accounts and firearms.

Not only that, but there isn’t just one dark web the dark web is made up of many darknets, which can be anything from small peer-to-peer networks to huge popular networks like Tor.īecause darknets are not indexed by any search engines and are not readily viewable on the ‘vanilla’ internet, they have become a haven for criminal activity. So, what is the dark web? It’s perhaps best to think of it as a kind of underground digital society and culture that sits just below the surface of the bread and butter internet. It’s also an invaluable tool for those wishing to contact each other covertly, which is why it’s become such an important resource for reporters.īut before we go any further into sorting fact from fiction about this most controversial of online topics, perhaps it’s best we first delve into exactly what the dark web actually is.

Social media, for example, is heavily censored in many countries, so the only way some citizens can get access to the rest of the world is through the dark web. The reality is that a great deal of dark web activity is not only perfectly legal but actually pretty everyday. There is a common misconception surrounding the dark web: that it is a place designed for evil deeds or illegal activity.

Not evil tor search engine