The Dark Web is an area of the internet that requires specific tools to access. Understanding its structure and use is essential for professionals supporting young people to be safer online.
What is the Dark Web?
The internet is broadly divided into three ‘layers’:
Open Web: Publicly accessible content that most of us use every day. It is accessed through browsers such as Safari or Edge or search engines such as Google or Bing.
Deep Web: This is part of the internet which isn’t visible through regular search engines and is accessed in other, less familiar ways. Most of the Deep Web is made up of databases which can be accessed securely over the ‘Open Web’. This includes secure databases, such as hotel bookings, online shopping, medical records and banking, which are protected by passwords and only accessible to authorised users.
Dark Web: A part of the Deep Web that requires specific software, such as The Onion Router (Tor), to access. Tor anonymises users by routing traffic through multiple servers, making it difficult to trace activity. Tor itself is not the 'Dark Web' but is a way to browse both the Open and Dark Web without anyone being able to identify the user or track their activity.
Why might people use the Dark Web?
1. Anonymity: They may want to protect their identity online, especially if they’re worried about being tracked or monitored.
2. Accessing hidden services: also known as an ‘onion services’. These are websites with anonymised IP addresses - a unique online identity. Some are used for legitimate purposes such as whistleblowing but others host illegal or harmful content such as child sexual abuse material, and the websites offering them, are often referred to as Hidden Services (above).
Is using Tor and accessing the Dark Web illegal?
Using the Tor browser itself isn’t illegal in the UK. It’s a tool designed to help people browse the internet anonymously and is used by journalists, researchers and everyday users who want to protect their privacy.
Accessing the Dark Web also isn’t illegal in itself. However, using Tor or the Dark Web to engage in illegal activity is against the law. This includes buying or selling illegal items, promoting terrorism or accessing indecent material, such as child sexual abuse material.
Risks and considerations
The Dark Web presents many of the same potential risks found on the Open Web, including potential exposure to:
- pornography
- child sexual abuse material (CSAM)
- drugs and weapon marketplaces
- exploitation by offenders
While offenders target victims on all parts of the internet, the Open Web is often used to carry out harm whilst the Dark Web is more commonly used by offenders to openly discuss ‘tactics’ to exploit young people and share material generated as a result of their offending. Its anonymity can make law enforcement investigations more challenging.
Supporting young people
If you discover that a young person is using Tor or accessing the Dark Web:
Stay calm: Their reasons might be due to curiosity or a desire for privacy.
Start a conversation. Ask open questions to understand what they’re doing and why:
- ‘Can you tell me what led you to explore the Dark Web?’
- ‘What kind of sites are you looking for when you use Tor?’
- ‘How did you hear about the Dark Web?’
- 'What are you hoping to find or do on there?’
Talk about privacy: Help them explore safer ways to protect their identity online such as adjusting their privacy settings on social media and messaging apps.
Signpost to support: Make sure they know where to go if they feel unsafe or need help. Help them understand how they can report to CEOP if they are concerned about sexual abuse and exploitation online. Encourage them to come to you or another adult they trust if they are concerned about anything online.
Want to learn more?
You may find our resource, ‘The Dark Web Explained’, useful. Developed in collaboration with The Children’s Society and Marie Collins Foundation, it includes a short film and fact sheets, designed to help professionals understand the Dark Web and support young people who are accessing or showing interest in it.