Is the dark web safe?

The dark web itself is not necessarily unsafe, and many legitimate companies have a presence there. But because it’s not regulated, it’s also a potentially attractive place for cybercriminals to hang out. That's why it’s important to be extra careful when browsing the dark web—sites you can find there may host sensitive content, foster illegal activity, or pose security threats. However, there are steps you can take to stay safer on the dark web, including never sharing personal info, using a VPN, and installing antivirus software.

Why doesn’t Google index the dark web?

Regular search engines like Google use “crawlers” to index their pages, following links from known web addresses to index other linked pages. The dark web lacks this interconnectedness. The dark web also uses a different protocol that a regular browser doesn’t follow. Finally, Google may not want content that appears on the dark web showing up in its search results.

How does a dark web search engine work?

A dark web search engine works like a regular search engine, but it’s designed to retrieve information from websites hosted on the dark web. Dark web search engines use specialized web crawlers to access the dark web, indexing content while respecting the network's anonymity protocols. The engines provide search results based on keywords, but the index is typically smaller and less comprehensive due to the hidden nature of many dark websites.

What happens if you go on the dark web without a VPN?

A VPN encrypts your online activity and shields private information such as your IP address, providing an additional layer of security and anonymity online. Although many dark web search engines do not track your activity, if you don’t use a VPN with Tor your ISP may be able to see your activity and hackers may be able to follow you online.

How big is the dark web?

The dark web reportedly makes up about 6% of the internet, whereas the deep web accounts for 90% of pages, and the clear or surface web 4%. This makes the dark web slightly bigger than the surface web.

What’s the difference between the deep web and the dark web?

The dark web is a subset of the deep web, neither of which can be indexed by regular search engines. The deep web is significantly larger than the dark web and includes sites like email accounts, banking portals, and subscription services that may contain sensitive information. To visit the deep web, you don’t need a special browser, but you do need to use login credentials. The dark web, by contrast, includes sites that sit on the onion network and require special software like Tor to access.

What are the best dark web search engines?

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