How Online Black Markets Work 98
CWmike writes "The internet is no stranger to crime, writes corporate investigator Brandon Gregg. From counterfeit and stolen products, to illegal drugs, stolen identities and weapons, nearly anything can be purchased online with a few clicks of the mouse. The online black market not only can be accessed by anyone with an Internet connection, but the whole process of ordering illicit goods and services is alarmingly easy and anonymous, with multiple marketplaces to buy or sell anything you want. Gregg started with $1000 and a took journey into the darker side of the Internet using two tools: Bitcoin and the Tor Bundle."
Re:Sounds like... (Score:5, Insightful)
Gregg started with $1000 and a took journey into the darker side of the Internet using two tools: Bitcoin and the Tor Bundle."
No..., he didn't.
It makes it seem like he did. But I doubt the veracity after reading the entire article.
Considering the article description, there would be no point to have converted the
money, unless he's never done it before and likes OMG ponies. Because in order
for it to be a black market purchase, you must purchase something, that doesn't
exist on the regular market. ie, He needed to commit a crime.
And then write about it.
Tits or GTFO.
-AI
How ofline Black markets works (Score:5, Insightful)
-Go to shady parts of a Big City.
-ask around for [illegal stuff]
-Use anonymous Cash (-- mention this is *BAD*, Um-Kay)
-Conclude "Big Cities" are bad and should be controlled/blocked off. Should have check points. (IOW: Nazis had the right idea: "Papers Please")
When will these fuddy-duddies/ idiots die-off so that this constant fear-mongering can stop?
Re:How ofline Black markets works (Score:4, Insightful)
When will these fuddy-duddies/ idiots die-off so that this constant fear-mongering can stop?
Die off won't help. You need a fundamental societal shift where fear doesn't sell. Damn unlikely to happen anytime soon. I'm sure right about where scarey movies stop selling, roller coasters go away... Or you need something "real" to be scared about instead of fearmongering on TV. Maybe a nice civil war, or ethnic cleansing, or utter economic collapse, or famine, or all 4 at the same time. They're extremely likely in our future; how far in future, who can say.
What MIGHT happen in the short term is the fuddy duddies die off so we no longer have to hear about how Elvis's hips, err, Dungeons and Dragons, err, video games, err, the gangster rap is corrupting the youth and there's this scarey internet thing, but in replacement we'll have to sit thru endless "Gen Y idiots gave away all their privacy on the internet; now they're screwed" and "all big business are always bogey man all the time" and stuff like that.
And how many are actually sting operations? (Score:5, Insightful)
I'd also expect that the cops are using some of these as sting operations.
Capitalism - It Works, Bitches! (Score:5, Insightful)
One would think shit like this would give our legislators a moment's pause to consider the futility of their constant attempts to enact various forms of prohibition... but alas, will likely have the opposite effect.
Apparently one of the key factors in getting elected to representative government is knowing fuck-all about economics.
So it goes...
Re:How ofline Black markets works (Score:2, Insightful)
If I have a stick, and I call one end of it "geniuses" and the other "idiots", then I cut off the end labeled "idiots" I do not get a stick with no "Idiots" end. Instead my stick still has an "idiots" end and it's even closer to the "geniuses" end. Continuing to apply that "solution" will only ensure I destroy the stick piece by piece.