The dark web refers to websites that are not on the regular internet but are instead hidden in a private network that is only accessible using specialized web browsers, such as the Tor Browser.
The Tor Browser is an open-source web browser created for anonymous browsing and to evade censorship. It routes users’ traffic through thousands of volunteer-run servers called nodes/relays. These nodes/relays and the websites operating on them make up the Tor network, or as it is more generally named, the dark web.
Sites running on the Tor network are called Onion sites as the URLs end with the “.onion” TLD, such as the CIA’s website at http://ciadotgov4sjwlzihbbgxnqg3xiyrg7so2r2o3lt5wz5ypk4sxyjstad.onion. Notice how the URL ends with the .onion TLD.
These sites are only accessible over the Tor network and are commonly used for privacy and anonymity. The Tor Browser also features many built-in protections that protect against tracking and fingerprinting.
While the Tor network was not created for illegal activities, as it’s harder to trace websites to their physical location, cybercriminals have also adopted it to host their websites.
For example, ransomware gangs use the dark web to leak stolen data and extort victims, and dark web marketplaces sell illegal items, such as drugs, weapons, stolen credit cards, stolen credentials, and malware.
However, not all sites running on the Dark Web are malicious. For example, legitimate sites, such as the BBC, the New York Times, ProPublica, and Facebook, have made their sites accessible as a Tor Onion URL to help people avoid government censorship.
This guide will teach you how to install the Tor Browser in Windows easily so you can access the Dark Web or browse the web anonymously. The same general process applies to other operating systems, as Tor is also available for Mac and Linux.
How to Install Tor
To gain access to the Dark Web, you must first install the Tor Browser. You can find the installer on their website: torproject.org.
Upon opening the Tor website, you will be presented with various download options for the operating systems that Tor supports, including Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android.
Source: BleepingComputer
Upon selecting the button for your operating system, you will be prompted to download the installer, which you should save to a folder.
Once the file is downloaded, run it to launch the installer and follow the prompt until the Tor browser is installed.
How to access your first Dark Web or Onion Site
When the Tor Browser is launched, you will be brought to a purple homepage with a search field for the DuckDuckGo search engine in the center of the screen. This search field allows you to perform regular, but now anonymized, web searches through DuckDuckGo’s Tor site.
Source: BleepingComputer
The search results from DuckDuckGo will be for websites on the regular web, which you still visit through Tor. For dark websites, you need to enter the specific Onion URL you wish to visit into the browser’s address bar.
These URLs are usually very long, consisting of a random jumble of letters and numbers. Though you likely won’t remember the addresses of onion websites, you can find these URLs on various websites on the internet.
Some safe URLs you can use to access news, government websites, and directories of Tor URLs can be found below:
Copy your desired onion URL and paste it into the address bar at the top of the screen to begin searching on the dark web. Alternatively, if the website has turned the onion URL into a link, you can click on that in the Tor browser, and it will automatically open the dark website.
Using Tor is especially helpful in countries where authoritarian governments censor the internet, preventing citizens from accessing news outside their country.
Tor allows you to circumvent these restrictions and get access to worldwide news, such as the BBC website shown below.
Source: BleepingComputer
Remember, the Tor browser connects to the internet differently than regular browsers in an attempt to increase your anonymity online.
This requires your connection to go through multiple nodes and relays, which will slow down browsing on Tor.
Please remember to be safe and enjoy using your newly installed Tor browser!