Introduction TO The Darknet
“Darknet” a mysterious word. A favorite topic of most people. Darknet or Dark web is a secret world that can be entered via ‘TOR’: TOR stands for ‘The Onion Router’. Onion because the structure of darknet resembles layers in an onion. Unlike ordinary browsing the PC doesn’t connect directly to the server where the site is stored, a complete chain of servers take part with the link so as to produce the best possible anonymity.
Let’s Understand The Structure Of TOR
First Layer
Let’s call it the entry point of the darknet. The entrance stage to the TOR system i.e. Server 1 receives the IP address from the PC. The TOR user then connects your personal computer to some other server let’s say Server 2. All the information is encrypted till it is received at Server 2.
Second Layer
This Server 2 just knows the entrance node — although not your pc or your own IP address. This information is sent through this node is encrypted and therefore can’t be read by the node. Besides the entrance stage, the TOR node only knows the exit node i.e. Server 3, the host that connects you to the desired page.
Third Layer
The exit node determines the true connection to the internet server where the requested goal page is situated. In the exit node, you are able to get the valid services that finish in ‘.onion’.
Is Tor Safe to Use?
Now, as we have understood the structure of the tor and how it works question is ‘Is it safe to use Tor?’. In December 2014, a group of hackers managed to compromise enough Tor relays to de-cloak Tor users. The part that makes Tor anonymous is that it relays your data from one node to another. It was believed that if they compromised enough of them, then they could track individual users on the Tor network and reveal their real-life identities. Tor developers also commented on this: “This looks like a regular attempt at a Sybil attack: the attackers have signed up many new relays in hopes of becoming a large fraction of network. But even though they are running thousands of new relays, their relays currently make up less than 1% of the Tor network by capacity. We are working now to remove these relays from the network before they become a threat, and we don’t expect any anonymity or performance effects based on what we have seen so far.”
