Posted on December 17, 2019 at 3:42 PM

DDoS Attacks on Darknet Leaves Users Perplexed on the Perpetrator

Darknet is currently down as ongoing DDoS attacks have incapacitated forums, marketplaces, and other onion sites. There are diverging views on the reason for the attacks. Some are blaming the attack on DDoS wars between rival markets while others are attributing the attack to law enforcement agencies.

December highly unfavorable for Darknet

November was a highly favorable market for Darknet. But this month has not been quite palatable for the marketplace. The problem has been credited to an access platform that has kept a major part of the platform largely inaccessible to users. Although the blame has been put on a DDoS attack, the cause of the attack is not very clear. While some are blaming the rival darknet market, others think it’s the activities of law enforcement.

Dark fail monitors the online status of dozens of darknet forums and DNMs, but the site has its issues. The DDoS attack has crippled several of those darknet forums and DNMs sites, as most of them have been offline several times. The latest attack on the sites is one of the heaviest in the whole year. This has frustrated a lot of DNM users, although some still have other shopping options.

The numbers of sites that are offline include Cannazon, Monopoly, Hydra, and the Hub Forum. Even Empire that has been relatively stable in the past is also down this month. In particular, image loading is hampering the visibility of Empire’s vendor listings and captcha. Also, the message board and order sections are very difficult to load.

Reason for the attack

Some Darknet users think law enforcement (LE) is responsible for the attack. According to them, the reason could be to direct users to a compromised marketplace or to interrupt DNM services. Even if LE has disrupted DNMs or Empire, buyers that optimize their opsec or encrypt their communications would not be affected.

In another statement by a Darknet user, LE does not need to frustrate a DNM to make its points known. He stated that people would lose faith in the market if it continues. Every time this happens, it’s affecting the market, and it becomes a war of attrition. The attack on DNMs could be very discouraging to users, and some experts fear the main purpose of LE could be defeated.

The most affected in all these attacks is Tochka. The company has been offline since last month. Although the DDoS attack was fingered for bringing down the site, the admin of the site has since gone awol. The Admin is nowhere to be found, despite the incessant request by users for the site to make a statement.

Users do not know why the site has been down since the admin has not come out with any statement. However, recently the site advised users to look for an alternative site for their shopping in the future. As we are approaching the holidays, partygoers will be earnestly hoping for a break for the incessant DODos attacks.