dark web
noun
variants
or less commonly Dark Web
: the set of web pages on the World Wide Web that cannot be indexed by search engines, are not viewable in a standard Web browser, require specific means (such as specialized software or network configuration) in order to access, and use encryption to provide anonymity and privacy for users
The dark web is only accessible by means of special software, allowing users and website operators to remain anonymous. Once used by political dissidents, the dark web has become the Internet's black market, where visitors can buy anything from guns to drugs and fake IDs or trade child pornography.—
Guillermo Contreras
compare deep web
Guillermo ContrerasExamples of dark web in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Reports of a sophisticated new artificial intelligence platform started surfacing on cybersecurity blogs in April, describing a bespoke system whispered about on dark web hacker forums and created for the sole purpose of crime.
—Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 7 May 2025
Now throw in the fact that buying passwords on the criminal underground, be that by the way of dark web marketplaces or surface web criminal forums, is stupidly cheap.
—Davey Winder, Forbes.com, 30 Apr. 2025
New log files from 2023 are still popping up on dark web platforms, suggesting the actual number of infections was even higher than expected.
—Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 12 Mar. 2025
With Interpol database collaboration and knowledge of dark web chatter, agentic AI can better prepare for ongoing cyber battles.
—Carlo Tortora Brayda, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025
Federal prosecutors have accused the men of operating 10 virtual storefronts on 17 different dark web marketplaces from September 2018 through February, the department said in a statement.
—Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2025
Boutros spent eight years as a federal prosecutor under then-U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, bringing a number of high-profile and complex prosecutions involving everything from international trade to dark web narcotics conspiracy.
—Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 7 Apr. 2025
Europol has shut down one of the largest dark web pedophile networks in the world, prompting dozens of arrests worldwide and threatening that more are to follow.
—Jon Brodkin, ArsTechnica, 2 Apr. 2025
Instead, law enforcement authorities in the Netherlands identified him after obtaining a copy of the server for a dark web email provider.
—Alex Riggins, Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2025
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Deni Ellis Béchard, Scientific American, 7 May 2025
Now throw in the fact that buying passwords on the criminal underground, be that by the way of dark web marketplaces or surface web criminal forums, is stupidly cheap.
—Davey Winder, Forbes.com, 30 Apr. 2025
New log files from 2023 are still popping up on dark web platforms, suggesting the actual number of infections was even higher than expected.
—Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 12 Mar. 2025
With Interpol database collaboration and knowledge of dark web chatter, agentic AI can better prepare for ongoing cyber battles.
—Carlo Tortora Brayda, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 2025
Federal prosecutors have accused the men of operating 10 virtual storefronts on 17 different dark web marketplaces from September 2018 through February, the department said in a statement.
—Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2025
Boutros spent eight years as a federal prosecutor under then-U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, bringing a number of high-profile and complex prosecutions involving everything from international trade to dark web narcotics conspiracy.
—Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 7 Apr. 2025
Europol has shut down one of the largest dark web pedophile networks in the world, prompting dozens of arrests worldwide and threatening that more are to follow.
—Jon Brodkin, ArsTechnica, 2 Apr. 2025
Instead, law enforcement authorities in the Netherlands identified him after obtaining a copy of the server for a dark web email provider.
—Alex Riggins, Mercury News, 28 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dark web.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dark%20web. Accessed 21 May. 2025.
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