Security firm Flashpoint says it has seen evidence and descriptions of DeSnake operating under the same pseudonym—first as a credit-card-focused cybercriminal on sites like Evolution and Tor Carder Forum before becoming a market administrator himself—since at least 2013. AlphaBay has long been rumored to have some sort of connections to Russia or Russians. Its rules have always banned the sale of data stolen from victims in former USSR countries, a common prohibition among Russian hackers intended to shield them from Russian law enforcement scrutiny. And when Alexandre Cazes wrote under the Alpha02 moniker on the site, he sometimes signed off with a Russian phrase for “stay safe.” But when Cazes was later tracked down in Thailand, many assumed AlphaBay’s Russian fingerprints had been designed to mislead investigators. But all of those technical and operational protections may matter less than a simple geographic one. DeSnake claims to be located in a non-extradition country, beyond the reach of US law enforcement.
Greetings And Welcome To Abacus Market! Abacus Market Link & URL
Mixers help, sure, but XMR’s built-in privacy is why I’ve switched my stash over. Monero’s my go-to for dark web payments because it’s darn near impossible to trace. With tricks like ring signatures and stealth addresses, it keeps your transactions off the radar—unlike Bitcoin, which can leave a trail if you’re not careful.
Contacting users from this sub to sell them anything is not allowed. This is to prevent scammers and opportunists from flooding the subreddit. If you are new to the sub, .onion hidden services, or Tor in general. Trying to access dread the typical tor(dot)taxi way but I’m getting “onion site not found” – I can’t see any alerts to dread being down.
Users Flocking To New Markets
DeSnake argues that new safeguards like these will make AlphaBay that much harder to remove from the dark web this time around. “I had given Cazes many ‘holy grails’ of anonimity, but he chose to use only certain things while he branded other methods/ways as ‘overkill,’” DeSnake writes, in his seemingly foreign-inflected and occasionally misspelled English. “The biggest reason I am returning is to make the AlphaBay name be remembered as more than the marketplace which got busted and the founder made out to have committed suicide,” DeSnake writes. Cazes was found dead of an apparent suicide in a Thai jail cell a week after his arrest; like many in the dark web community, DeSnake believes Cazes was murdered in prison.
Common Scams On Dark Web Marketplaces
- “I’m distrustful of DeSnake, and I think across the communities there’s a general distrust.”
- When one dark market falls, buyers and sellers just move on to the next one.
- The service on Tor appears to be hosted alongside Dread services and features both the Dread waiting queue and clock-captcha for DDoS protection.
- For months, an extortionist had reportedly threatened to reveal the identity of one AlphaBay administrator, and even released identifying information about him after AlphaBay’s proctors sent him or her a hush-money payment.
- In May 2015, the site announced an integrated digital contracts and escrow system.15 The contract system allows users to make engagements and agree to provide services in the future, according to the terms of the contract.
Our analysts will continue to follow this market’s presence and reputation on the darknet, and provide further updates as this story unfolds. Furthermore, darknet users rarely draw so much attention to themselves. DeSnake has broken this mold with their dramatic return to the public eye that included interviews with the media and identity verification through a potentially compromised PGP key. One user openly joked they would stick to purchasing their drugs on social media.
No Fraud Related Content
Its emphasis on user anonymity and document forgery makes it a core tool for identity fraud. Founded in 2014, BriansClub remains one of the oldest and most infamous dark web markets for stolen credit cards, fullz (complete identity kits), and dumps. While some of these markets were shuttered by law enforcement agencies – some took the easy way out with exit scams. Here are some of the now-defunct dark web markets that were notorious for cybercrime. Believe it or not, some dark web marketplaces have pretty advanced systems for building trust. Sellers often need to pay a deposit to prove they’re serious, and they build their reputation through positive reviews.
New To Tor And onions?
“Wes” Wheeler, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI, Ruth Mendonça, Inspector-in-Charge of the Chicago Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and Ivan J. Arvelo, Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York office of Homeland Security Investigations. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melody Wells and Ann Marie Ursini. Due to the normal AB being down recently I’ve been looking for other options (like most people). I then found the only AB sub on reddit and noticed the link which they provided in the sidebar seemed to work.
Whats Going On With Alphabay Links???
Torrez has been steady since 2020, rocking 4,650+ listings with BTC, LTC, ZCash, and Monero. Wallet-less payments and multi-signature deals make it a safe bet—I’ve never worried about getting burned, even after a close call with a dodgy vendor once. Next year, they’re boosting vendor sign-ups, so expect more action. Incognito’s all about keeping things easy and safe—perfect if you’re avoiding street buys. What sets them apart is their support—real-time chat that’s saved my bacon a couple times when a deal went sideways. They’re planning some vendor recommendation thing for 2025, which could shake things up for new sellers—kinda ties into the community vibe.
I’ve noticed they’re big on local vibes—vendors tweak their stock for where you’re at. With 2FA and escrow, it feels safe enough, and it rarely goes offline. For a long period of time, most AlphaBay users speculated that the market’s admins pulled off an “exit scam,” a term used to describe when a Dark Web market shuts down and the owners steal all the cryptocurrency from escrow wallets. In July 2017, police in the US and Europe, including the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Agency, Europol and the Dutch National Police, partnered to take down the site.
- A recent study by the University of Manchester and think tank Rand Europe found 811 arms-related listings on just 12 dark web marketplaces.
- In order to purchase items on AlphaBay, users need to send bitcoins to the site’s own wallets.
- If that AlphaGuard feature doesn’t sound aspirational enough, DeSnake says he’s also in the early stages of a long-term plan to implement a fully decentralized marketplace system, essentially a BitTorrent to the current dark web markets’ Napster.
- You’ll find reviews, quick tables with the nitty-gritty details, and some practical tips on using Monero (see how) or setting up PGP (check it out).
- Plus, we’ve got some fresh takes on dark web trends and how to get started.
It is a hub for financial cybercrime and offers a wide range of illicit services and stolen data that cater to sophisticated cybercriminals. Valued at approximately $15 million, Abacus Market is one of the most lucrative platforms in the dark web ecosystem. In 2024, the platform grew significantly in popularity, partly because of its strategic acquisition of users from a number of recently shut-down marketplaces, such as AlphaBay and Incognito Market, which had recently closed their doors. N 2025, dark web websites frequently change domains and are often short-lived.
The Biggest Dark Web Takedown Yet Sends Black Markets Reeling
FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe acknowledged shutting down such markets was like playing whack-a-mole. His agency would likely have to take on more massive dark web marketplaces in the future, he said. A recent study by the University of Manchester and think tank Rand Europe found 811 arms-related listings on just 12 dark web marketplaces. The researchers found nearly 60% of the weapons came from the US and most of the sales were headed to Europe. Worryingly, one gun bought on a cryptomarket was used in a terrorist attack in Munich in 2016.
The 10 Biggest Dark Web Markets In 2025 – Updated List & Security Insights
Most people start by using the Tor Browser, which hides your IP address. For instance, cybercriminals can buy credit card details with a $5,000 balance for just $110. Today’s cybercriminals spread their activities across multiple platforms, making them harder to track and shut down.
