When you’re looking to trim security spending you may ask yourself if you really need some services like dark web monitoring. Changing times have made some security measures less important than they used to be, but dark web monitoring isn’t one of them. These days, it’s not a nice-to-have, it’s a must-have. Bad actors have access to much more data than they used to, increasing the chance that your organization’s credentials or other sensitive data are exposed. Growing exposure means growing risk and growing danger – making keeping an eye on potential trouble from the dark web a smart move for every organization.

A combination of world events has contributed to a sea change in the cybercrime landscape. Thanks to economic pressures and technological evolution, the dark web is still quickly growing, with more people using the dark web regularly these days than ever before. As of May 2022, the dark web counts just over 3 million active users per day, up from about 1.5 million in January 2020. Some of that growth can be directly attributed to the rise of the Cybercrime-as-a-Service economy, with more skilled cybercrime specialists available for hire than in prior years. That makes it easy for cybercrime groups to conduct more operations than in the past.

No one likes to work harder than they have to. That’s one reason why bad actors are always in the market for credentials and other sensitive information that enables them to conduct effective phishing attacks or slip inside of a company’s defenses quickly and easily. Just like any other marketplace, prices on the dark web for things like data, malware, or hacking services are fluid, with certain data types or services trending and fading for a wide variety of reasons, just like commodities in any other sector. This snapshot offers an idea of what services and commodities sell for on the dark web.

Malware, Premium quality, per 1,000 installs	$5550
DDoS attack, Unprotected website, 10-50k requests per second, 24 hours	$45
Credit card details, account balance up to $5,000	$120
Hacked Coinbase verified account	$120
10 million USA email addresses	$120

Source: Privacy Affairs

Where is Stolen Data Available on the Dark Web?

Major sources of data are everywhere on the dark web. Cybercriminals can often obtain the data that they want to power their operations for cheap or even free. Information like user records, intellectual property, operational technology assets, financial records, personally identifying information, and credentials can be found in many cybercriminal hangouts including:

• Hidden chat rooms
• Unindexed sites
• Private websites
• P2P (peer-to-peer) networks
• IRC (internet relay chat) channels
• Black market sites
• Botnets
• Torrents
• Chat channels in apps like Telegram
• Message boards/Forums
• Discord servers

How to choose the right solution to monitor the Dark Web?

Everyone wants to spend their money wisely, especially in a challenging economy. When looking at dark web monitoring, whether you’re choosing a solution for the first time or considering switching to a different solution, asking these questions can help you ensure that you’re investing in the right one for your organization.

Does your dark web monitoring solution…

• Uncover your company’s compromised credentials in seconds?
• Show your organization’s accurate real-time risk 24/7/365?
• Use human and machine-powered monitoring?
• Protect business and personal credentials?
• Monitor your domains, IP addresses, and email addresses?
• Leverage out-of-the-box integrations with popular PSA platforms?
• Offer a fast, frictionless alerting and mitigation process?
• Have SaaS or API options available?
• Get to work in minutes with no extra hardware or software required?
• Guard the personal email addresses and credentials of your privileged users?
• Find out quickly if supply chain or third-party risks are putting your company in danger?

Choosing the right tool for your business can take time and is certainly not easy. If you’re not sure where to start, or if you need help navigating the sometimes confusing world of security tools, give us a call. We will be happy to help you find the best solution for you.

Source: ID Agent