Darknet (Dark Web)

Context

The Narcotics Control Bureau recently dismantled a pan-India drug trafficking network operating on the darknet known as “Team Kalki.”

Q1. What is the Darknet (Dark Web)?

1. It refers to a part of the internet that cannot be accessed through regular search engines or standard web browsers.
2. It operates on special encrypted networks where users require specific software or configurations to access it. Websites are intentionally hidden and provide greater anonymity.
3. Because of this, it is often used for both privacy-focused communication & illegal activities (like online drug markets, illegal arms trade, etc.).

Q2. What are the different layers of the internet?

The internet can broadly be divided into three layers.

1. Surface Web: This is the portion of the internet accessible through standard browsers like Chrome or Safari. Websites indexed by search engines such as Google fall into this category. It represents only about 10% of the total internet.
2. Deep Web: The deep web includes content not indexed by search engines. Examples include Online banking pages, Private databases, Academic resources and Subscription-based content. It forms a large portion of the internet.
3. Dark Web: It is a small section of the deep web intentionally hidden and accessible only via specialized tools, often operating on encrypted networks. Eg: Tor (The Onion Router).

FAQs

Q1. What is the Darknet (Dark Web)? 

A hidden part of the internet, accessible only through encrypted networks and special software like Tor (The Onion Router), offering anonymity but often used for illegal activities.

Q2. How is the Darknet (Dark Web) different from the Surface Web? 

The Surface Web is indexed by search engines and accessible via standard browsers, while the Dark Web is intentionally hidden and requires specialized tools.

Q3. What is the difference between the Deep Web and the Dark Web? 

The Deep Web includes non‑indexed content like banking pages and academic databases. The Dark Web is a small, hidden section of the Deep Web, accessible only through encrypted networks.

Q4. Why is the Darknet (Dark Web) used? 

It is used for privacy‑focused communication and also for illegal activities such as drug trafficking, arms trade, and cybercrime.

Q5. What percentage of the internet does the Surface Web represent? 

The Surface Web makes up only about 10% of the total internet, while the Deep Web and Dark Web form the majority.