Law enforcement agencies continuously find new online underground markets and forums. These underground markets and forums host stolen digital goods like passwords, personal data, and corporate data. Many global law enforcement companies found that Telegram is at its peak of becoming a criminal community and a digital market for people who are looking for stolen account logins and personal data. Moreover, these underground things are continuously growing, and the Telegram app has now developed into a new DARK WEB.
But do you know why Telegram is the new dark web market for cybercriminals? Read this post and learn all about the dark reality of Telegram and why it has become a popular platform for cybercriminals.
Why Telegram is the New Dark Web Market?
Among online privacy and security followers all over the world, Telegram is a popular messaging application with over 600 million active users. You can set up this app on a mobile or desktop device to chat privately, join groups, and do anything you want. Moreover, Telegram has become an alternative to WhatsApp, which prevented many users with recent fluctuations in its privacy policy. The app enables encrypted conversation and offers confidentiality in the ever-changing landscape of online interactions.
However, a cybersecurity firm found that hackers and threat actors are selling and sharing data leaks on the Telegram app. Well, this kind of data is mostly found on the dark web, which is a Western version of the internet that can only be accessed via special browsers. Hackers and threat actors find the dark web pleasing because it lives in a corner of the deep web, which is a part of the internet that doesn’t appear in search engines.
So, all these fences come with a price, as not anyone can access the dark web world. This is where Telegram comes into the picture.
Researchers Claims: Telegram is the New Dark Web
The rise in popularity of the Telegram app among cybercriminals has been attributed, at least in part, to the wave of new users that arrived on the platform in 2021 amid the controversy about the changes in WhatsApp’s privacy policy. Additionally, the platform is attractive to cybercriminals because the app is easy to use as compared to the dark web underground forums.
As per the cybersecurity experts, the tools easily available to hide in the dark web have gradually transitioned over to the standard web as social media has a bigger shop front. Many new users on social media use Telegram, which means that criminals have moved over to access the larger pool of potential customers. There is very little to be done to stop these marketplaces from picking up. Cybersecurity experts also revealed that cybercriminal activity on Telegram has increased to 100%. And Telegram channels are said to have increased by over 300%. Researchers said that the activities on the Telegram app are mainly done in online markets hosted using hidden dark web services.
All of the researchers claim that Telegram is the new dark web for lower-level, lesser-skilled cybercriminals.
The Ecosystem Makes Telegram the New Dark Web Market
Encrypted messaging applications have their own cybercrime ecosystem. But none of them is anywhere near the regular rollout of new features that Telegram has. As per the reports, the Telegram cybercrime ecosystem supports more in the direction of selling individual personally identifiable data and login credentials than corporate secrets. But that advanced database does appear there for sale from time to time.
However, researchers claim that a database of an unidentified insurance firm with 120 million customers is being offered for $360,000. It is far from infrequent to get recirculation of corporate data that has already been leaked in previous data breaches. There are even aggregator channels devoted to gathering this kind of data, and prices are far from excessive. Channels bursting with stolen data and login credentials from many data breaches offer access for $100 to $200 weekly, or around $2,000 for permanent access.
Direct access to banking scam services is also accessible: money mules, credit card skimming, and services that make purchases using stolen card numbers. Ransomware gangs also ply their trade on the platform, though the report finds that they are typically lesser and lesser-known groups.
Which Types of Dark Web Services Find in Telegram?
Now Telegram is the new dark web, allowing you to get the services that you will find in the dark web world. Here we have shared some of the dark web services you will find on the Telegram app.
- Data Breaches: Data breaches leaked or sold on different underground forums on the dark web come to pass in different Telegram channels. Different sellers of Telegram offer data arrangement or hash-cracking services on leaked databases.
- Financial Fraud: A Telegram seller offers data when it comes to financial fraud. Sellers provide physical and digital cards, stolen bank account logins, hijacked accounts, or pre-KYC crypto exchange accounts on different Telegram channels.
- Stolen Accounts: Telegram sellers posted freely or sold streaming services, VPNs, and other hijacked accounts at lower prices, including Amazon Prime, Netflix, Hulu, HBO, Spotify, NordVPN, ExpressVPN, and many others. Criminals usually hijack these accounts and then sell them in bulk or even hand them out for free.
- Fake ID, Documents, Vaccination Certificates: Many Telegram channels selling photoshopped driver’s licenses, passports, social security cards, birth certificates, and vaccine certificates even claim to get a real certificate by bribing.
- Tutorials: Cybercriminals not only offer their criminal services but also offer tutorials, tips, and techniques for free or as a service. With the tutorials, sellers act as a recruitment tool and attract young, beginner criminals to join their operations.
Closing Sentiments
Cybercrime-focused Telegram groups and channels post data dumps to share illicit exchanges between bad actors, some with over 10,000 members. Usually, these data dumps would have been traded over the dark web. In this post, we have described why Telegram is the new dark web market for cyber criminals and types of dark web services you can find in this app. Let us know in the comment box if you know of other illegal dark web services on the Telegram app.