What Really Happens on the Dark Web?

Chintana Bhaskara
Nov 26, 2025
3 min read

Article written by: Chintana Bhaskara

Article designed by: Chintana Bhaskara & Sanvi Desai

Beneath the Surface

In the news we see on tv, the dark web is described to be a shady and scary world of crime, but the reality is that it is much more complex. It is a section of the internet we use in our everyday lives, and is purposely hidden to only be accessible through a special software, and built to work around encryption. This hidden world attracts a wide range of people from those who are criminal professionals to private users.

To understand it better, the dark web is like peeking behind a curtain and seeing a secret unknown place, a world that is both fascinating and unsettling.

Inside the Hidden Network

Many of us think that the internet is just what we see by the search engines we use like Google, Safari, Chrome, etc. However, this is just a small part of the much larger hidden network. The dark web is a small but secret part of the internet which is a part of the broader “deep web,” which is about 90-96% of online content. The dark web itself is only about 5-6% of the entire internet, though it is a small amount, and plays a big role in conversations in the topics of security, privacy, and law. In 2023, there were over 2.5 million users and by the time it was April of the same year, the amount of users increased to 2.7 million, showing that the network is growing larger in scale and its use.

Into the Digital Underworld

A significant part of what occurs in the dark web is the trade and use of illegal goods and services. In daily users alone, over half are a part of some form of illegal activity. These marketplaces underneath our world buy and sell items like stolen credit cards, passwords, fake IDs, drugs, or even weapons. In order to pay for the items, it's paid with cryptocurrency to keep all

transactions on the low. India TV News shows that 28% of people in countries like Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa are the most familiar with how the dark web works, at 26% are Latin America and Asia-Pacific, and lastly the Middle East and Africa at 23%. This shows that the amount of usage of black markets and illegal use of goods are spreading globally, affecting others too.

The Landing Zone

The main way that the dark web stays alive is from stolen data. When companies or websites get hacked, all personal information gets put up for sale like emails, passwords, or even bank details. SOCRadar's 2024 Annual Dark Web Report states that criminals are involved in the use of data for identity theft, scams, and ransom attacks. In 2022, Market.us showed that drug sales in the dark web rose up by around 15%, making it a total value of $1.7 billion in online payments alone.

The dark web overall has become a huge marketplace where money, data, and power beyond control traveling globally, making awareness in cybersecurity and the dark web much more important than ever.

Stay Smart, Stay Safe

Although the dark web is seemingly a dark place it isn’t entirely bad, however, it is most definitely risky. It can also be a safe space for journalists or people in countries who don’t have access to the internet. However, the same tools that help keep our data private are also the same tools that allow these secret criminals to go through with their operations. With over a million users daily, and over half of those users being involved in illegal activity, the dark web is continuing to grow in a way for people to have freedom, but also a threat to people all over the world. Understanding how the dark web works helps us keep our data safe and avoid becoming the victims of these secret crimes that are shown in the shadows.

Works Cited

Amy. “Who Are Today’s Dark Web Users?” ID Agent, 23 Mar. 2023, www.idagent.com/blog/who-are-todays-dark-web-users/.

Buxton, Oliver. “What Is the Dark Web and How Do You Access It?” @Norton, Norton, 14 May 2024, us.norton.com/blog/how-to/what-is-the-dark-web? Accessed 18 Oct. 2025.