The Darknet
An “evil” platform for criminals or a “good” version of the Internet without control? What is the dark net and how does it work?
Are planning a 45-minute workshop on the subject “Dark net”? Scroll down to find helpful ideas.
You will find specific ideas and example excercises for your workshop participants.

Few people know about the darknet, an alternative form to the Internet that we are all accustomed to. The anonymous darknet encrypts information and data, making it difficult to track. It can be accessed via the so-called Tor browser.
However, due to the encryption of the data web pages built up very slowly on the darknet.
In addition, pages cannot be easily found using traditional search engines such as Google or Yahoo! Special darknet search engines such as Decter, Go or Tahj are needed.
To maintain anonymity, websites also use a combination of numbers and letters.
If you want to buy something on the darknet, you will need the currency bitcoins. Bitcoins are an exclusively digital currency and are subject to extreme fluctuations in value. An I.T. developer once paid 10000 bitcoins for a pizza in 2010.
Today, this corresponds to a value of two point two million euros.
People use the darknet for different purposes. On the one hand, it is very popular with all kinds of criminals. They used the darknet to deal in drugs, weapons, forged documents and much more and hope to avoid criminal prosecution since the data is encrypted.
On the other hand, however, there are also people who run the risk of being persecuted politically because of their opinions and statements on the dark side of the Web. They can communicate and exchange information anonymously.

What is the Darknet?
The “dark net” exists in parallel to the “clear net”, the Internet that we all know. Servers and IP addresses are encrypted in the dark net, making it virtually impossible to track data transfer. This allows users to interact anonymously. Experts suggest that the dark net is considerably larger than the clear net and is used by millions of people worldwide every day.
How can I search the Darknet?
In the dark net, web pages cannot be accessed using conventional search engines such as Google or Bing. Instead, searches take place using special dark net search engines such as Duckduckgo.onion or Torch.onion, as well through catalogs of dark net websites. In the dark net, website addresses only consist of a sequence of numbers and letters, such as s35tz4h.onion.
How do you pay for things in the Darknet?
The cryptocurrency bitcoin is used to pay on the dark net. Bitcoin is a digital currency. They are subject to extreme fluctuations in value, since no central institution (like a central bank) is responsible for them. They can be bought from bitcoin dealers and sold again for “real” money. This process is not prohibited and is within the law. Bitcoins are transferred anonymously on the dark net with the help of special peer-to-peer applications. Opinions on the cryptocurrency Bitcoin vary amongst the population just as much as the perception of the dark net itself. On the one hand, Bitcoins are immune to forgery, for example, but they also bear high risks, such as rapid loss of value.
How can I get into the Darknet?
The TOR browser allows you to surf the dark net, similar to Internet Explorer on the clear net. The symbol for the TOR browser is an onion. The many layers of the onion symbolize the layers that data passes through during encryption. As a result, websites a relatively long time to render, up to several minutes. However, this is the only way an anonymous connection can be established.
How can I communicate in the Darknet?
The dark net is predominantly used by two groups of people: 1. People who need to communicate anonymously (such as whistleblowers or victims of political persecution). The dark net enables them to exchange sensitive data, the discovery of which could potentially endanger human lives. 2. People engaged in illegal activities (such as arms dealers or drug traffickers). Anonymity protects them from negative legal consequences.
How safe is the Darknet?
Simply surfing in the dark net is not illegal, but the actions carried out there sometimes are. Illegal activities, such as the purchase of arms or drugs, can have legal consequences because the encrypted data transfer does not offer complete protection. There are also several security vulnerabilities in the dark net that can lead to the disclosure of a user’s identity.

WHISTLEBLOWERS
Whistleblowing refers to exposing maladministration or illegal activity in companies, governments, administrations, and so on. These abuses must be of considerable scope and of general interest. A whistleblower is usually a part of the institution being reported on and reports about his or her own experiences. In doing so, whistleblowers not only risk their jobs, but also have to reckon with disciplinary measures.
JOURNALISTS
Journalists use the dark net to obtain and publish information. Today, renowned newspapers such as “The Guardian” also have their own digital mailboxes in the dark net to facilitate the exchange of sensitive data. This enables them to come into contact with whistleblowers, for example.
PEOPLE UNDER CENSORSHIP
People from countries where certain websites such as Facebook and Google are censored use the dark net to circumvent these barriers. They can navigate and act freely in the dark net. They can contact other people, disseminate information, and also keep informed of current developments.
POLITICALLY PERSECUTED PEOPLE
The dark net is a place where the anonymity of the politically persecuted is preserved and protected. The reasons for political persecution vary: sexual orientation or criticism of the government can quickly become a threat to people living in autocratic states. These people can make themselves heard in the dark net, communicate, and – if they live in exile – contact their relatives and acquaintances.
HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS
Human rights activists work wherever human rights have to be protected. To do this, they use the dark net, for example, during the Arab Spring. Human rights activists can also be members of the political opposition or activists who criticize the state and represent their democratic rights in the sense of freedom of expression.
Scenario I
The loyalty card
We have all experienced it – you are at the checkout counter in the supermarket and the cashier asks you: “Do you have a Payback or loyalty card?” But why is the supermarket interested in your loyalty card?
Think about it: How much is your customer data worth to the supermarket?
Scenario I
The loyalty card
This free card promises all kinds of rewards and discounts and is very popular with customers. However, customers pay for it in a different way, namely with their personal data. The data on a customer’s purchasing behavior is collected using a loyalty card in order to then perfectly adapt products to a customer’s needs in a store. For example, data such as the place and time of purchase, how much products cost and especially what and how often something is bought are stored with the help of such cards.
Do you buy a certain product regularly? Have you recently changed brands? All this information is extremely interesting to businesses and manufacturers and provides information on supply and demand.
Scenario II
Health-related data
New job – better life, right? You have a new job and your new employer asks you to take out the necessary insurance policies. You use the Internet to compare prices and find the insurance policy that is tailored to your needs. All you have to do is enter “some” of your personal data. Supposedly, you will be sent the best suggestions per e-mail within the next few days. Instead, your phone begins to ring constantly and every call is from a new insurance company that wants to win you over as a customer.
Think about it: Who will benefit from that information in the future?
Scenario II
Health-related data
Your health is important and precious – not just to you! The average value of health data is € 54.87. In the U.S., health data is worth € 76.06, twice as much as it is in worth in Europe (€ 32.11). Health-related data is also traded in the dark net.
Scenario III
The value of your family status
You are out for a drink and meet a good friend. But she seems like a completely different person. Suddenly you notice it: she is wearing a beautiful engagement ring and is not drinking her favorite cocktail, as she usually does. She has wonderful news: she is expecting a baby! You spend the evening talking about the future and her plans.
Think about it: How much would this information be worth on the Internet?
Scenario III
The value of your family status
Information about turning points in a person’s family life, such as an imminent marriage or birth, is of particular interest to the economy. This information is worth an average of € 7.62.
Scenario IV
“My timeline”
It happened again while vacuuming the floor. One false move and two glasses lay broken on the floor. So you drive to the next store to replace your favorite glasses. You turn on the navigation app on your smartphone, activate your GPS signal, and your app shows you the store closest to you. As soon as you get there, you pick out new glasses and, when you are paying for them, the cashier asks, “Could you give me your zip code, please?” Without thinking about it, you give her your zip code and she types it into the cash register.
Think about it: But why is this so important? How much is the information about your address and current location worth to the store?
Scenario IV
“My timeline”
Your physical location, especially your place of residence, is very valuable. That is why many people are averse to giving this kind of information to others. They are afraid it might be used by criminals, who could rob their homes while they are away, for example. A private address is worth about € 11.84. As a rule, stores use this information to adapt their products and services to the region and to track the route used to get there.
Some apps, not only query your location, but also store GPS data. This means not only is the location of a person monitored at all times, but their range of motion is also defined by navigation apps, such as Google Maps. This information is worth € 14.77 and therefore even more valuable than a private address.
How valuable is my data?
Take a look at your everyday life: you go shopping, get gas, go to the post office, and shop at a hardware store, and then surf the Internet in the evening. In all of these situations, you will probably be offered all kinds of discounts or free gifts. Most of them don’t even cost anything! All you have to do is disclose your data.
Your data is more valuable than you think. Trading data is a million-dollar business. Datasets are illegally sold by the thousands on the dark net. This trade is based on data theft. This is why your data is worth cold, hard cash. Some data is more valuable than others. The more private the data, the higher its value. This is why passwords and login data are more valuable (€ 69.55) than data about your gender (€ 2.66). Check the info document in the download section to see how much your individual data is worth.
Neither good nor evil
You would be mistaken to hastily dismiss the dark net as “evil”: And that is exactly what Tobias Plate, spokesman for the Federal Ministry of the Interior and an expert on crime prevention, is trying to get across in his much-quoted interview about the dark net. Because the dark net is “neither good nor evil.”
Spiegel Online / Photo: BMI Bertrand
Final destination: the darknet
Your journey through the dark net ends here. Welcome back to the clear net!