Darknet markets have become a harbour for those who want to purchase legal and illegal items without being traced. These platforms offer just about anything for sale and come with the promise of not tracking the user’s cookies. Of late, vendors on these marketplaces are accepting Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Monero and other virtual currencies for their products.
Freedom and Anonymity Attracts People to Darknet Market Places
Most people want freedom and anonymity; hence, the first place they might look in is darknet marketplaces. They include Dream and Berlusconi Markets. On each of these, one can find a seller that is willing to trade their product for cryptocurrencies. The products can range from household items to eBooks, and even drugs.
As at press time, a Dream vendor was offering a rechargeable power laser pointer for $150. The device can either be paid for using Bitcoin or Bitcoin cash. There’s also a specification for the device that it has a power output of 20,000 MW, high enough to burn a target. That being the case, the vendor has advised that it should be used with caution.
Gold Bars and Flour Exchanged for Cryptocurrency
Another instance of this is the Berlusconi Market where gold bars and flour gold are sold. The platform also offers .edu Gmail addresses for sale. Either of these can be purchased using Bitcoin, Litecoin, or Monero. The same can be said about Cannazon where different varieties of drugs made from Cannabis are exchanged for Bitcoin and Monero.
In the same vein, “22 Ways To Kill a Man With Your Bare Hands” is an ebook whose PDF is being offered for sale at $7.28. The seller is willing to accept the payment in fiat or Bitcoin. Part of the product description reads: “we will show you list of attacks that police are asked not to employ, as they may prove deadly.”
Europol Cracks Down 4.5 Million Worth of Drugs on Darknet
BTCNN on June 28, 2018, reported of products worth 4.5 million euros which the European Police Office (Europol) seized from a European Darknet. The products were majorly drugs which were manufactured by labs that had been legally registered.
In a similar event, BTCNN on February 15 informed of the sale of 620 million user logins for $20,000 worth of Bitcoins. These accounts were offered for sale on Dream Market cyber-souk. Likewise, several platforms which were affected by the hack, attested of a security breach. They also revealed that steps had been taken to protect their customers’ information.