The Dark Web As a Phenomenon: a Review And
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The Dark Web as a Phenomenon: A Review and Research Agenda COMP90019: Distributed Computing Project (25 pt) Conventional Research Project Abhineet Gupta - 719080 The University of Melbourne Semester 1, 2018 Supervisors: - Dr. Atif Ahmad - Dr. Sean Maynard Page 1 of 45 Abhineet Gupta COMP90019 719080 S1, 2018 Abstract The internet can broadly be divided into three parts: surface, deep and dark among which the latter offers anonymity to its users and hosts. The dark web has become notorious in the media for being a hidden part of the web where all manner of illegal activities take place. The more restrictions placed upon the free exchange of information, goods and services between people the more likely there exist hidden spaces for it to take place. The ‘black market’ of the internet – the dark web - represents such a hidden space. This review looks at the purposes it is widely used for with an emphasis on cybercrime, and how the law enforcement plays the role of its adversary. The review describes these hidden spaces, sheds light on their history, the activities that they harbour – including cybercrime, the nature of attention they receive, and methodologies employed by law enforcement in an attempt to defeat their purpose. More importantly, it is argued that these spaces should be considered a phenomenon and not an isolated occurrence to be taken as merely a natural consequence of technology. The review is conducted by looking at existing literature in academic journal databases. It contributes to the area of the dark web by serving as a reference document and by proposing a research agenda. Page 2 of 45 Abhineet Gupta COMP90019 719080 S1, 2018 Academic Declaration I certify that: - this thesis does not incorporate without acknowledgement any material previously submitted for a degree or diploma in any university, and that to the best of my knowledge and belief it does not contain any material previously published or written by another person where due reference is not made in the text. - clearance for this research from the University's Ethics Committee was not deemed necessary given the scope of this work. - the thesis is ~9800 words in length (excluding text in images, bibliographies and appendices). Page 3 of 45 Abhineet Gupta COMP90019 719080 S1, 2018 Acknowledgements I would like to thank both of my supervisors – Dr Atif Ahmad and Dr Sean Maynard – for their encouragement, ideas, support and eagerness that permeates this work and manifests itself in the successful completion of this scholarly endeavour over the course of the whole semester. I would also like to thank my partner for her continual support in enabling me to devote a significant amount of time to this exercise. Page 4 of 45 Abhineet Gupta COMP90019 719080 S1, 2018 Table of Contents Abstract .................................................................................................................................................................. 2 Academic Declaration ............................................................................................................................................. 3 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................................ 4 List of Figures .......................................................................................................................................................... 6 List of Tables ........................................................................................................................................................... 6 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 7 2. Research Method .......................................................................................................................................... 9 2.1 Sources and Keywords .......................................................................................................................... 9 2.2 Filtering for Ranking and Relevance ...................................................................................................... 9 3. Discussion of Literature .............................................................................................................................. 11 3.1 Classification of Internet Spaces ......................................................................................................... 11 3.2 The Dark Web Examined ..................................................................................................................... 13 3.2.1 History of anonymous spaces on the internet ........................................................................... 13 3.2.2 The Onion Routing (TOR) Protocol & Hidden Services ............................................................... 13 3.2.3 Dark Web as a Distributed system ............................................................................................. 14 3.2.4 Accessing the Dark Web ............................................................................................................. 14 3.2.5 Dark Web as a Phenomenon ...................................................................................................... 15 3.4 Major Roles of the Dark Web ............................................................................................................. 16 3.4.1 Markets/Illegal Content.............................................................................................................. 17 3.4.2 Communication/Recruitment..................................................................................................... 18 3.4.3 Cybercrime & Terrorism ............................................................................................................. 18 3.4.4 Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) ................................................................................................... 20 3.4.5 Financial transactions ................................................................................................................. 21 3.4.6 Proxy to Surface Web ................................................................................................................. 22 3.5 Summary of Roles ............................................................................................................................... 22 3.6 Concerns about Accountability & Visibility ......................................................................................... 25 3.7 Growth of the Tor Dark Web............................................................................................................... 27 4. Model for Future Research / Gaps Identified ............................................................................................. 29 4.1 Enabling Cybercrime: Criminals’ Dependence on the Dark Web ........................................................ 29 4.2 Distributed Hidden Services (non-Client-Server model) & Dark Web Scalability ................................ 29 4.3 Role & Capability of Law Enforcement ................................................................................................ 30 4.4 Dark Web Phenomenon Growth vs Regulatory Growth ..................................................................... 31 5 Conclusions .................................................................................................................................................. 33 6 Appendix...................................................................................................................................................... 36 6.1 PAFM Elicitation .................................................................................................................................. 36 7 References ................................................................................................................................................... 38 Page 5 of 45 Abhineet Gupta COMP90019 719080 S1, 2018 List of Figures Figure 1: Surface, Deep and Dark Web ................................................................................................. 12 Figure 2: How a VPN works ................................................................................................................... 15 Figure 3: How a Tor connection works ................................................................................................. 15 Figure 4: A topic taxonomy of Tor Hidden Services, as a graph. .......................................................... 17 Figure 5: Relationship, Actors, Functions and Tensions (RAFT) diagram of Tor ................................... 25 Figure 6: Number of users directly connected to Tor (last four years) ................................................ 27 Figure 7: Total bandwidth available and in use within Tor (last four years) ........................................ 28 List of Tables Table 1: Roles played by the Dark Web as per literature ..................................................................... 22 Table 2: PAFMRQ analysis of current work........................................................................................... 36 Page 6 of 45 Abhineet Gupta COMP90019 719080 S1, 2018 1. Introduction The internet has been a catalyst for significant change in the modern world. Its decentralised nature coupled with relatively low levels of regulation have