How Dark is the Dark Web?

Every time when we hear about the users’ personal data being leaked on the dark web, we wonder where this will stop. On Friday when Cyble, the company providing real-time insights into cyber threats and risks using AI, claimed that the personal data of 2.9 crore Indian job-seekers was posted for free on dark web by cyber criminals, our concern just grew a little more. “29.1 million Indian jobseekers’ personal details leaked in deepweb for free. We usually see this sort of leaks all the time, but this time, the message header got our attention as it included a lot of personal details – where most of the things are generally static such as education, address, phone numbers, geographic locations, genders, social media profiles, passwords and more of around 40 million user accounts,” the company said in a blog.

The company feels the leak to have originated from a resume aggregator given the sheer volume and detailed information. It also said in a statement that cybercriminals are always on the lookout for such personal information to conduct various nefarious activities such as identity theft, scams and corporate espionage. Recently, Cyble also revealed about the hacking of Facebook and Sequoia-funded Indian education technology firm Unacademy.

While these are just two instances brought to light by Cyble, there are more that lies unsaid and floating freely in the dark web waiting to be exploited by the cybercriminals. But many of us must wonder, how dark is the dark web?

An enchanting space of the internet world several documentaries and news have attracted ordinary citizens and internet users to this network hence this world is growing fast

Well, while no one really knows the size of the dark web, estimates put it at around five percent of the total internet. An enchanting space of the internet world, several documentaries and news have attracted ordinary citizens and internet users to this network, hence this world is growing fast.

As dark web allows users to remain anonymous through encryption, it becomes a breeding ground for illegal activity. But on the other hand, it can be beneficial too where people can communicate with outside world, and even for whistleblowers. But despite the benefits, dark web’s notorious side takes the crown and hence is scary. From crimes with covert transactions like drugs, money or human trafficking, can be easily committed on dark web.

However, the question lies that what we should do when we learn that our data floats freely on such dark web. With certain immediate action and care, we can stop the cybercriminals from exploiting our data. If your email is found floating on the dark web, immediately change the email password to a new, unique and complex one. And if your credit card number is exposed, immediately reach out to your credit card company to ask them to issue a new card and number. Such small but immediate measures will proof effective; however, we really need to be cautious when we live two lives – one on web and one outside the web. We need to secure both our worlds with care and caution.