AProudLefty
He sucks Damocles' dick. :)
U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Public Affairs
(202) 514-2007/TDD (202) 514-1888
Share on Twitter Twitter Share on Facebook Facebook Email Email
November 7, 2014
More Than 400 .Onion Addresses, Including Dozens of ‘Dark Market’ Sites, Targeted as Part of Global Enforcement Action on Tor Network
WASHINGTON—Federal law enforcement has taken action against over 400 Tor hidden service .onion addresses, including dozens of “dark market” websites, that were offering a range of illegal goods and services for sale on the “Tor” network, a special network of computers on the Internet designed to conceal the locations of individuals using it.
The website addresses and computer servers hosting these websites were seized yesterday as part of a coordinated international law enforcement action involving the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, and law enforcement agencies of approximately 16 foreign nations working under the umbrella of Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) and Eurojust. This action follows the arrest on Nov. 5, 2014, of Blake Benthall, aka “Defcon,” for charges brought in the Southern District of New York for his alleged role in operating the Silk Road 2.0 website. This action constitutes the largest law enforcement action to date against criminal websites operating on the “Tor” network.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara of the Southern District of New York, FBI Executive Assistant Director Robert Anderson and Executive Associate Director Peter Edge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) made the announcement.
“It is a plain fact that criminals use advanced technology to commit their crimes and conceal evidence—and they hide behind international borders so they can stymie law enforcement,” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell. “But the global law enforcement community has innovated and collaborated to disrupt these ‘dark market’ websites, no matter how sophisticated or far-flung they have become.”
“As illegal activity online becomes more prevalent, criminals can no longer expect that they can hide in the shadows of the ‘dark web,’” said U.S. Attorney Bharara. “We shut down the original Silk Road website and now we have shut down its replacement, as well as multiple other ‘dark market’ sites allegedly offering all manner of illicit goods and services, from firearms to computer hacking. In coordination with domestic and international law enforcement agencies, we will continue to seize websites that promote illegal and harmful activities, and prosecute those who create and operate them.”
“Underground websites such as Silk Road and Silk Road 2 are like the Wild West of the Internet, where criminals can anonymously buy and sell all things illegal,” said HSI Associate Director Edge. “We will continue to use all of our resources and work closely with our U.S. and international law enforcement partners to shut down these hidden black market sites, and hold criminals accountable who use anonymous Internet software to peddle their illegal activities.”
https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/more-than-400-.onion-addresses-including-dozens-of-dark-market-sites-targeted-as-part-of-global-enforcement-action-on-tor-network
