Opioid Premiums, Jobseekers and Vaccines: Covid-19 Fuels Darknet Markets in a Different Way

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has found its way onto the deep web and during the last few months, researchers have found a great number of individuals turning to darknet markets (DNMs) for employment. The organization Check Point Research has recorded a rising trend of people looking for jobs on hacking forums and DNMs. … Read more

Next Step Mobile Surveillance: How You Walk, Your Heartbeat – Why Bitcoin Matters to Combat Government Privacy Invasion

It may sound like something from a dystopian cyberpunk movie, but payment providers could soon be validating transactions by the way users walk, their heartbeat, veins, and more. Mastercard has recently revealed they “have been testing heartbeat, vein technology, and the way people walk to authenticate people.” The high tech proposal, designed to fight hackers … Read more

Bitcoin Cash Captured More Than 10% of Darknet Sales Last Month

2019 was an interesting year for darknet markets (DNMs) and a number of marketplaces closed for a variety of reasons. Despite the closures, crypto payments on DNMs doubled for the first time in five years. Moreover, statistics from the blockchain analytics provider 1000x Group show digital currencies like bitcoin cash (BCH) have joined BTC’s dominant … Read more

Reddit Removes Bitcoin Payment Option, Censors Darknet Forum

Despite all the Telegram groups, Discord channels and many other alternatives, Reddit remains a leading forum for the wider bitcoin community – especially for new users to learn about the concept for the first time. As such, the website holds power over the conversation and what happens on Reddit can have much wider repercussions. Also … Read more

U.S. Agency ICE Conducts Investigations That Exploit Blockchain Activity

On January 25 the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deputy assistant director, Greg Nevano, explained in a testimony that the agency was using “blockchain exploitation tools” to combat cryptocurrency use in illicit markets. Nevano’s testimony revolved around the growing opioid addiction problem in the U.S., and how the law enforcement organization is fighting the … Read more