“Operation RapTor shows that the dark web is not beyond the reach of law enforcement,” said Head of Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre, Edvardas Šileris. “These predators who peddled poison on the dark web might have thought they are untouchable — hiding behind screens, pushing fentanyl, fueling overdoses, and cashing in on misery. “The FBI could not do this work without our partners both at home and abroad, and the staggering success of this year’s record-breaking amount of fentanyl, guns, and drugs seized prove that our efforts are working.
Cyber-dependent Crimes
Renowned for its extensive inventory of financial data and sophisticated operating methods, Brian’s Club is a key player in the underground economy of financial cybercrime. It has built a reputation for being a reliable source of stolen credit card data and PII. Investors are gearing up for more inflation data to assess the state of the U.S. economy.
Alphabay rose to prominence with 400,000+ users and $600M yearly trades, ending in a 2017 bust. Tor2door Market manages 25,000+ listings and $4.5 million monthly trades via BTC and XMR, with a 7% share. Vice City Market runs 18,000+ listings and $2.5 million monthly trades on BTC and XMR, with a 5% share.
Security Evolution
Dread is as integral to the dark web infrastructure as Deepdotweb was, again proving that the police haven’t exactly won the war. I do not believe that checking a website’s uptime, nor verifying its encryption keys, is illegal in my jurisdiction. Market URLs change rapidly nowadays on the dark web, to escape malicious hacking by blackmailers. Meanwhile, the slack from the closure of Deeptdotweb has now been taken up by dark.fail. In the summer of 2017, Dream market, the second-biggest at that time, had just 48,000 deals. We viewed DeepDotWeb as a gateway to the dark web.” It did indeed have an impact, but only for a few weeks.
Japan Dark Store Market Overview, 2030
Darknets and dark markets present a multifaceted challenge to businesses and society as a whole. In repressive regimes, darknets play a vital role in enabling free speech and access to uncensored information. Companies must implement strong data security measures, employ encryption, and monitor for data breaches to protect customer and employee information.
This joint report prepared by the EMCDDA and Europol considers the latest findings from international research, fresh empirical data, and operational information and intelligence in order to illuminate how darknet markets function and how they relate to criminal behaviour. The defendants allegedly sold drugs on darknet marketplaces in exchange for cryptocurrency under the monikers “NuveoDelux,” “Mrjohnson,” and “AllStateRx.” Operation RapTor builds on the successes of prior years’ operations and takedowns of marketplaces, which resulted in the seizure of darknet infrastructure from Nemesis, Tor2Door, Bohemia, and Kingdom Markets, providing investigators across the world with investigative leads and evidence.
Verify Onion Links
- Are you looking for the best markets in France to explore?
- A Bonafide Research industry report provides in-depth market analysis, trends, competitive insights, and strategic recommendations to help businesses make informed decisions.
- In furtherance of Operation RapTOR and in their first action as a JCODE member agency, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) additionally sanctioned Behrouz Parsarad, an Iranian national, for his role as the founder and operator of Nemesis Market following seizure of the market.
- Valued at approximately $15 million, Abacus Market is one of the most lucrative platforms in the dark web ecosystem.
- They employ various techniques, such as tracking and infiltrating dark markets, developing advanced threat intelligence, and enhancing international cooperation.
Trusted by 10,000+ users and 800+ vendors, its 2FA and escrow networks ensure top privacy. Incognito channels 20,000+ listings and $2.8M monthly trades through BTC and XMR, with a 5% market presence. Drughub excels in pharmaceutical dark pool trading with 15,000+ listings and $2M monthly via BTC. Archetyp powers 28,000+ listings and $3.5M monthly trades on BTC and XMR, securing a 6% market slice.
Dark Covenant 30: Controlled Impunity And Russia’s Cybercriminals
FreshTools, founded in 2019, specializes in selling stolen account credentials and data, particularly webmail, RDPs (Remote Desktop Protocols), and cPanels. The platform is favored by cybercriminals seeking access to accounts that can be exploited for fraud or sold to others. Their specialty is selling stolen data, including login credentials, credit card information, and compromised accounts. The marketplace requires merchants to pay fees to sell their products, helping ensure a certain level of quality control.
Award Winning Cybersecurity
By 2015, some of the most popular vendors had their own dedicated online shops separate from the large marketplaces. Items on a typical centralized darknet market are listed from a range of vendors in an eBay-like marketplace format. They function primarily as black markets, selling or brokering transactions involving drugs, cyber-arms, weapons, counterfeit currency, stolen credit card details, forged documents, unlicensed pharmaceuticals, steroids, and other illicit goods as well as the sale of legal products. According to public documents, the seizure operation targeted the Silk Road 2.0 website and more than 400 hidden services related to dozens of other “dark market” websites that are only accessible to operating on what is known as “The Onion Router” or “Tor” network, a part of the Internet designed to make it practically impossible to physically locate the computers hosting or accessing websites on the network.
For example, AlphaBay Market – once the largest dark web marketplace – was seized by US and international law enforcement in 2017. Dark Matter also runs an in-platform “Academy” with tutorials on PGP encryption, Monero use, and multisig transactions, catering to both newcomers and experienced darknet users. User feedback on darknet forums is mostly positive, citing reliability and smooth transactions, though, as with all darknet markets, risks remain. Bazaar marketplace is known for a wide range of products (drugs, fraud tools) and a straightforward interface.
Abacus Market shines with 35,000+ listings and a monthly volume of $5M, commanding an 8% share of the darknet drug trade. Relaunched in 2021, it has solidified its position as the largest darknet marketplace, offering a vast range of products from narcotics to digital exploits. Discover the leading darknet markets of 2025 that dominate the Tor network with innovative features, massive transaction volumes, and unparalleled user trust. Essential strategies for navigating darknet markets safely and effectively. Convert and track crypto rates for darknet marketplace transactions—stay ahead of the game. Layer a VPN (e.g., NordVPN) to mask your IP before entering darknet markets.
The site is accessible via both Tor and the clear web, and its layout closely resembles that of Abacus Market, which makes navigation very user-friendly.Notable features include an automated carding shop, an escrow system for manual orders, and a dashboard that displays balances in both BTC and Canadian dollars (CAD). WeTheNorth, or simply WTN, was launched in 2021, and its name is a nod to the famous Toronto Raptors slogan. Additionally, it offers automatic purchases, buyer protection, and even a loyalty points program.Since its launch, it has conducted several massive data leaks. Everything is conducted within the Tor network, with payments made in Bitcoin or Monero, as is customary.One of its most curious features is its daily raffle system, funded by the market’s commissions.
Cryptocurrency Trading
Without an undercover agent tricking the users into giving up their protected information, or sloppy information management once again on behalf of the perpetrators few methods are available when all that is trafficked is data and not physical objects that must be transported physically and not electronically. The name of the operation is a portmanteau of “hunt” or “hunter” and Tor, an open-source anonymity network that is often used to access the dark web. Operation Dark HunTOR was an international law enforcement operation targeting opioid trafficking and other illegal activities on The Onion Router (TOR). Other institutions, like healthcare facilities or non-profit organizations, could also integrate dark store services for their regular procurement needs, benefiting from the efficiency and centralized fulfillment that dark stores provide. Event organizers, from corporate conferences to cultural festivals, can leverage dark stores for the timely and large-volume delivery of food, beverages, and other essential supplies, significantly simplifying their logistical operations.
In this post, we’ll walk you through the top 10 dark web marketplaces that you need to watch for potential threats to your organization. Are you struggling to stay on top of the main dark web markets worth monitoring? While many TOR related multinational coordinated operations have relied on sophisticated technological attacks, malware and hacking on the part of the government, review of these cases have yet to reveal a technological method used to deanonymize any users of the TOR markets. One such method used was “controlled buys” of drugs from the dark market sites and then working to trace the sale back to the source mail box. This makes the strategic approach to market entry, location, and operational models distinctly different from, for example, the UK which embraces rapid delivery more freely or Germany which has its own labor law complexities but less direct urban resistance to dark store existence.
Archetyp Market was one of the few marketplaces allowing the sale of highly potent synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, contributing to broader health threats and overdose risks in Europe and beyond. The operation targeted Archetyp Market, a platform with over 600,000 users and transactions totaling at least 250 million euros, underscoring the scale and ongoing challenge of illicit drug sales facilitated by anonymizing technologies. HugBunter, the anonymous user who founded the forum in 2018, asked “market admins, vendors, and other service operators” to provide “proof-of-life” by signing posts with what’s known as a PGP encrypted signature, a form of cryptographic proof. Europol also said the market allowed the sale of fentanyl and “other highly potent synthetic opioids.”Authorities seized the site’s online infrastructure, which was hosted in the Netherlands, and arrested its 30-year-old German administrator in Barcelona, Spain. From June 11 to 13, the agency said, a series of coordinated law enforcement actions targeting the platform’s administrator, moderators, key vendors and technical infrastructure took place across Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, Spain and Sweden.
Highend Report
Essential advice for navigating darknet marketplaces safely and effectively in 2025. The top performers in darknet marketplaces for 2025, excelling in trade volume, vendor ratings, and market influence. Its 13,000+ users and 1,100+ vendors prioritize speed and escrow security in darknet trading. With 8,000+ users and 600+ vendors, it commands a 10% share of darknet drug trades—a rising star since 2023.
While dark stores globally aim for efficiency and speed, in France, they operate within a unique regulatory pressure cooker, a deeply rooted traditional retail structure with its own successful online models, and a strong cultural sentiment around urban aesthetics and local commerce. The French dark store market stands out from other countries, particularly its European counterparts like the UK and Germany, due to several unique factors, with regulatory hurdles and urban planning concerns being the most defining characteristics. Despite these regulatory hurdles and the inherent complexities of densely populated historic cities, the French dark store market is characterized by ongoing innovation and adaptation as operators seek to balance consumer convenience with urban planning considerations.
