Dark Web, where cyber-criminals flourish, needs more monitoring: Report

Speakers at several cyber security conferences I’ve been to recently have warned IT managers about the so-called dark Web, where terrorists and criminals can anonymously communicate and buy and sell botnets, malware, stolen passwords and credit card numbers.

Now a research group has published a paper on the dark Web in the hopes that security professionals and governments will come up with strategies and policies for limiting its influence.

“The dark Web and terrorists seem to complement each other — the latter need an anonymous network that is readily available yet generally inaccessible,” warns the report from the Global Commission on Internet Governance (GCIG).

“As such, it has become increasingly important for security agencies to track and monitor the activities in the dark Web, focusing today on Tor networks, but possibly extending to other technologies in the near future.”

Issued a few days ago and authored by former U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Tobby Simon, president of the India-based Synergia Foundation, the paper is aimed at shedding light on networks that are hard to observe compared to the visible side of the Internet.

It also comes at a time when debate over Internet governance is increasing at U.N. bodies like the International Telecommunications Union. Also, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers’ (ICANN) contract with the United States Department of Commerce due to expire later this year, which mean a new governing body for that needs to be created.

Part of the Tor network, the dark Web is accessed through the Tor anonymous browser. It isn’t only used by bad guys: Governments, reporters and people who are under the heels of authoritarian regimes also use it for communications. Security pros who know what they’re doing also enter it to see what’s for sale, which gives them possible clues for defences. For those who don’t know much about the dark Web and want a quick primer, the eight page white paper is a good start.

The paper calls for

  • mapping the hidden services directory by deploying nodes in the distributed hash table used by the Tor and I2P networks;
  • customer data monitoring by looking for connections to non-standard domains;
  • social site monitoring to spot message exchanges containing new Dark Web domains;
  • hidden service monitoring of new sites for ongoing or later analysis;
  • semantic analysis to track future illegal activities and malicious actors;
  • marketplace profiling to gather information about sellers, users and the kinds of good exchanged.

While the paper notes that there have been recent arrests of cybercriminals behind sites hosted in the dark Web (like Silk Road 2.0), it warns that may lead to it becoming more fragmented into alternative dark nets or private networks, further complicating the job of investigators.

The commission was established just over a year ago to think about the future of Internet governance. It was launched by the Waterloo, Ont.,-based Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) and the British think tank Chatham House.

Would you recommend this article?

Share

Thanks for taking the time to let us know what you think of this article!
We'd love to hear your opinion about this or any other story you read in our publication.


Jim Love, Chief Content Officer, IT World Canada

Featured Download

Howard Solomon
Howard Solomon
Currently a freelance writer, I'm the former editor of ITWorldCanada.com and Computing Canada. An IT journalist since 1997, I've written for several of ITWC's sister publications including ITBusiness.ca and Computer Dealer News. Before that I was a staff reporter at the Calgary Herald and the Brampton (Ont.) Daily Times. I can be reached at hsolomon [@] soloreporter.com

Featured Articles

Cybersecurity in 2024: Priorities and challenges for Canadian organizations 

By Derek Manky As predictions for 2024 point to the continued expansion...

Survey shows generative AI is a top priority for Canadian corporate leaders.

Leaders are devoting significant budget to generative AI for 2024 Canadian corporate...

Related Tech News

Tech Jobs

Our experienced team of journalists and bloggers bring you engaging in-depth interviews, videos and content targeted to IT professionals and line-of-business executives.

Tech Companies Hiring Right Now