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

Examples of dark web in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The leader of a dark web drug-trafficking ring has pleaded guilty to several conspiracy charges for distributing drugs from a clandestine lab in Detroit, federal prosecutors said. —

Christina Hall, Detroit Free Press, 22 Mar. 2024 Finally, NordVPN offers dark web monitoring as part of its Threat Protection collection. —

PCMAG, 27 Mar. 2024 Dashlane offers a more expensive premium plan at $59.88 per year, including remote device access management, a VPN, dark web monitoring, and advanced credential-sharing options. —

PCMAG, 18 Jan. 2024 These scams seem to mostly commandeer dormant X accounts purchased online through dark web marketplaces, according to a whitepaper released by the digital threat monitoring platform CloudSEK. —

Ashley Belanger, Ars Technica, 5 Jan. 2024 Have dark web click-farmers AI’d a zombie-Manute Bol to fascinate viewers and mine data, and if so, is his battery running low? —

Jonathan Rowe, Spin, 22 Aug. 2023 These details can include data from various sources, such as open-source intelligence, dark web monitoring, social media and other threat intelligence feeds. —

Rabiul Islam, Forbes, 4 May 2023 Norton 360 is a collection of privacy management tools, including a VPN, antivirus, and dark web monitor. —

Stackcommerce Team, PCMAG, 14 Aug. 2023 Mike Litt, who specializes in consumer financial protection for the advocacy group U.S. PIRG, said credit monitoring alerts, credit score services, dark web monitoring and other financial offerings that I was pitched are mostly a waste of money. —

Shira Ovide, Washington Post, 21 Apr. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dark web.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.