In these forums, you can get stuff like malware, hacking tools, and exploits. They’re the tools that enable cybercriminals to conduct their attacks on businesses, institutions, and individuals. Also, it provides users with an escrow service, which adds an extra layer of trust when they conduct transactions on this notorious platform. Over time, BHF has become a notable forum in the Russian cyber landscape because of its seemingly technically skilled community and an organized structure (hence, authorities aren’t able to seize it yet).
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This breach was part of a wider cluster of four breaches that targeted various underground cybercrime forums within a short time span. The conversations align with the widely held view that threat actors running major cybercrime operations need to have a “krysha” (“roof”—that is, protector) in law enforcement. The forum is a predominantly Russian-language forum with a marketplace section where cybercriminals trade stolen credit card information, malware, and even zero-day exploits.
All is revealed in the Kladman’s Bible, a 26-page how-to guide for Hydra’s droppers, which can be found lurking on various drug forums on Hydra. An earlier version of the bible was circulated among droppers on RAMP, Hydra’s smaller predecessor, the first site to pioneer this way of dealing on a significant scale. She got her drugs from what she calls a “master drop,” a large stash of anywhere between 20 to 500 grams, hidden deep in the forest, far from Moscow. Before starting work, droppers must pay a deposit of around 6,000 rubles ($80) to the shop through bitcoin or a Qiwi wallet, to make sure they don’t run off with the first stashes they are tasked with hiding. Once they have hid 6,000 rubles worth of treasures, they can start earning.
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- Despite all the attacks, blocks, and the constant pressure from the authorities, the forum remains active.
- Users need a specialized browser like Tor to access these forums, which provides anonymity and encryption to its users.
- It routes your connection via several encryption servers to help you stay anonymous and secure.
- Whether or not they’ve got new tricks up their sleeve or keep doing more of the same remains to be seen.
- In the case of Maza, forum members logging in were greeted with a message about their data being leaked and the forum being compromised.
- If you want to buy something, deposit cryptocurrency in your wallet, and you will be charged directly.
The activities of MVD are regulated by the Code of Criminal Procedure of Russian Federation. The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) is the federal executive authority of the Russian Federation. Headed by a minister appointed by the president of Russia, the MVD oversees internal troops and the police, whose tasks are to maintain law and order and suppress offenses on the territory of the Russian Federation. Get the latest updates on privacy, plus expert tips, and security guides to up your digital protection game. Similarly, according to a report from ReliaQuest, the Russian Market listed credentials tied to over 136,000 customer domains and was used by attackers across multiple industries, including finance, healthcare, and government.
- Additionally, exclusive private sections on the forum require payment to access.
- Initially, it was not easy to join the forum as it even included interviews.
- Some users want to expand and bolster their hacking skills, and hence they go to forums and look for ransomware groups.
- Some players (like Avaddon and REvil) closed their RaaS or disappeared from the public space.
- Security professionals monitor the dark web forums not only for real-time threat updates and signals, but also as a direct contact with how the cybercriminals operate and think.
Top Russian Cybercrime Forums
This exclusivity has made Exploit.in a key venue for high-level cybercriminal operations, including collaborations on ransomware attacks and other large-scale cybercrimes. The forum’s longevity and ongoing relevance are a testament to its importance in the cybercrime ecosystem. BreachForums rose from the ashes of RaidForums, a well-known dark web forum that was taken down by law enforcement. Founded by the hacker known as Pompompurin, BreachForums quickly became a central hub for cybercriminals, especially after the closure of its predecessor. Despite the arrest of Pompompurin in March 2023, the forum was revived under the leadership of ShinyHunters, a group notorious for major data breaches targeting companies like Microsoft’s GitHub and Tokopedia.
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There’s also a search bar that you can use to search for any particular product or vendor. If you want to buy something, deposit cryptocurrency in your wallet, and you will be charged directly. To access DarkFox, you must register yourself, but before registration (on the homepage), you can view the featured listings, goods categories, and a product search bar from which you can search for any product and even apply filters.
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The platform focuses primarily on DDoS attacks, carding, and several other forms of cybercrime. Dark web forums are online platforms that can only be accessed using anonymous networks, mainly Tor. Unlike clear web forums, these communities not only facilitate communication, but they also facilitate the sharing and trading of various services and goods (most of which are usually illicit or illegal). Users need a specialized browser like Tor to access these forums, which provides anonymity and encryption to its users.
In Other Languages
“Once the physical cash is secured in the physical hands of the seller, they then complete the narcotics sale, either burying the sold products or shipping them out as has been done historically,” it said. “Hydra acts as a host for sellers to set up and run their own narcotics shops, with Hydra profiting as the intermediary for all executed transactions conducted,” a recent joint report by Flashpoint and Chainalysis, revealed. To remain anonymous about your purchases on the dark web, always use cryptocurrency as your mode of payment. If a seller encourages you to opt for other well-known and commonly used payment methods, then the person is likely to be a scammer, and you must not make any deal with them. Always use a fake name and a temporary email address when you buy something from the dark net shops. You can even use a secure email provider or a burner email address whenever you visit the dark web.
Dropmen are charged under article 228 of the Russian criminal code (drug trafficking) and can get slapped with jail terms of up to 20 years, even for relatively small amounts. Sergey was first hit with a seven year sentence, then another court raised it to 13 years. His 18 year old friend also got 13 years and the third teenager, aged 17, got five years. Finally in January of this year, after nearly two years of appeals and taking her case to the media, Oxana and her family managed to bring it back down to six. In 2017, Oxana’s son Sergey was arrested and convicted of trafficking as a dropper for an online shop called Don Diego when he was 18 years old. Eventually, RAMP tried closing its blind spot, poaching Hydra’s chemists and suppliers.
If a transaction is made without an intermediary, buyers deal with dealers one-on-one. Within 48 hours after the transaction has been accepted, the dead drop is made for the buyer. Encrypted messages are used in communications between the dealer and buyer. “Prices are now several times more expensive for new customers (known as Novoregovs). Manage your accounts and be honest customers,” reads the tagline for one of the major stores. Kira has the coordinates of the dead drop and photos of the location where the speed is hidden on her phone.
These forums are typically found on the dark web, but they can also be accessed via the clear web. Furthermore, Russia has a documented history of conducting state-sponsored cyber warfare. Cybercrime forums provide an outlet for threat actors to coordinate, exchange information, and conduct illicit trades. Often hosted on the dark web (but sometimes accessible via the clear web), these forums are hubs of malicious activity.
At its launch, the platform accepted payments through Litecoin, but now it has incorporated support for other payment methods like Monero and Bitcoin. The platform also cares about its users and uses PGP encryption and two-factor authentication to secure their data and communication. “It’s more like traditional drug dealing with online support than a real full-fledged anonymous marketplace,” says Christin, comparing RAMP to Silk Road’s simpler predecessor OVDB, or the Open Vendor Database. “To some extent it’s very primitive. But to some extent it clearly works really well, because these guys are still alive and kicking.” In our previous Russian darknet focused blog post, we discussed some of the tools and techniques the Russians were discussing and using in offensive cyber operations against US and international organizations.
