Drugs and The Dark Web: A Dangerous Combination

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Drugs and The Dark Web

There is a lot of information and many assumptions about the dark web. Most people have no idea what the dark web is, how it works or what really takes place. Also, many people do not know the difference between the dark web and the deep web.

In many cases, most people understand that the dark web is a dangerous place that people access for illegal reasons. Therefore most people chose to stay away from the dark web because of fear.

However, someone who may not be able to score drugs or other illegal contraband through individual connections may choose to access the dark web out of disparity. For friends and family, it can very difficult to find out how a loved one is gaining access to such substances.

In this article, we will take a look at the dark web and the dangers that surround it, as well as treatment for addiction to illegal substances purchased from the dark web.

What is the Dark Web?

The deep web includes any websites that you need a password and authorization to access. For example, you could not be able to access the contents of someone’s email just by googling them. Anything that you can find on search browsers like google is considered part of the surface web. The dark web is only accessible by using browsers like Tor. 

Understanding “Tor” and How it Makes The Dark Web Accessible 

Tor is short for The Onion Router. It is so named because of all of the layers of anonymity you use to protect your identity. It was named this way to relate to the many layers of an onion. While there are some good things on the dark web, it was instrumental in the Arab spring, there are also many bad things.

One of the things that your loved one could be using the dark web is to buy drugs. Two of the most infamous drug hubs, Silk Road and Alphabay have been shut down. This in no way means that there are not plenty more sources for drugs on the dark web.

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How Do Black Market Drugs Get into My Home?

Often drugs are sent through the mail. Other things ordered on the dark web like child pornography or contacting a hacker for hire does not require an exchange of physical goods. Many times, bitcoin is used in the dark web transaction because it is harder to track. Make sure you open every letter and box that you get if your loved one is addicted to drugs and you do not know where they are coming from. They might be in letters that just look like junk mail.

This goes not only for pills but for powder too. You would probably not notice an envelope that contained only a small number of pills. Some drugs, like LSD, require only 25 micrograms to create a high. This is less than the weight of two grains of salt. Enough LSD for a high is about $10. 2,000 micrograms of fentanyl will kill you. A traditional dose of heroin is 1/10 of a gram. That is 100,000 micrograms. Drugs do not have to be shipped in large bricks to enter your home. 

How Can I Stop My Loved One from Buying Drugs on the Dark Web?

This is why you need to get your loved one to a rehabilitation clinic. At DreamLife Recovery, it is much harder for a patient to access drugs than it would be outside the clinic. Here your loved one will not be able to receive any drugs. We know what we are looking for. They cannot smuggle in drugs either as all of our clients are searched before entering the clinic. Your loved one will not have access to any sort of private stockpile of drugs that they might have stored away at home. Even more importantly, your loved one will be separated from the people who do drugs with them and to whom they might be selling drugs to, whether on or off the dark web.

Should I Go on the Dark Web?

The dark web is incredibly dangerous. Many people advertise ways to download Tor. No matter what you do this is not a safe place to visit. It is not somewhere to go ask around if your loved one has been on there. It is not somewhere to confront a possible dealer or ask them to stop selling to your loved one. This will only lead to trouble. 

There is nothing to really be gained by visiting the dark web. This is not a place to visit and find out what it is like. You will probably find yourself with more than you can handle if you start poking around the dark web for fun or otherwise go on without knowing what you are doing. Reading a few websites and blogs is not enough research.

How Did the Dark Web Get Started?

The dark web was developed by the United States Navy as a way to share and receive information from spies. Because having users pop up here and there would look suspicious and it might mean that even though the address is camouflaged, other governments might find the spy. To camouflage itself, the government opened the dark web up for anyone to use. The government’s projects are masked by the sheer number of users on it. 

What Sort of Crime is on the Dark Web?

Although it was started and remains a place for anonymous free speech, it has also descended into crime in many parts. However, Interpol, the FBI, and the police are all collaborating to shut down crime on the dark web. Massive stings like taking down Silk Road and Alphabay took years.

The arrests are still going on. Many of the drug dealers and other criminals are still at large. Just because these websites have been taken down does not mean that the problem is solved. Other dangerous things are also available on the dark web like people who are being trafficked for sex and other reasons, child abuse images, weapons, hit people for hire, and hackers for hire, are a few things that can be found on the dark web. 

Many people on the dark web have been doing this their whole lives and are very intelligent. Many of them have alluded law enforcement for a very long time. So it is strongly recommended that you do not try to intimidate them in order to make them to leave your loved one alone. It is far better to get your loved one somewhere safe, and in an addiction treatment program like ones we provide at DreamLife Recovery.

Don’t Wait! Get Help Today!

If you or someone you know is suffering from addiction, do not hesitate to contact us here or call our team of experts at (844) 402-3592.

Let us help you live the life you have always dreamed of.

Resources:

  1. “How LSD Works” – Freeman, Shanna and Nathan Chandler; How Stuff Works, 10 May, 2018
  2. “Going Dark: The Internet Behind the Internet” – All Things Considered, NPR; 25 May, 2014
  3. “The golden age of dark web drug markets is over” – Brandon, Russell; The Verge, 17 February, 2019
  4. “What is the dark web? How to access it and what you’ll find” – Guccione, Darren; The State of Cybersecurity, CSO; 18 November, 2020
  5. “Into the Dark: Scratching the Surface of the Dark Web and Its Potential Risks to Users” – Bisson, David; The State of Security, Tripwire; 29 June, 2020
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