What does the Russian Darknet look like?

Tomcat

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Five years ago, the darknet was an "underground" that was just getting settled in Russia. In 2017, the TOR browser is a popular, massive retail tool, and drug dealers are forced to compete in advertising tricks, because supply has already outstripped demand. The marketplaces here are reminiscent of Avito: the same message boards and personal stores. Aggregator sites like Godnotaba monitor the availability of the largest resources: in the section "Marketplaces. CIS "now 13 positions" online ". They are like islands in an archipelago - each with its own trading traditions, but a common marketing climate for all.

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RAMP

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HYDRA

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Russian Silkroad

On the home page, the guest is usually greeted with a broadband mess of banners, like a mall façade from the 2000s. Russian Anonymous Marketplace (RAMP) is the most popular platform for the sale of illegal substances on the darknet. Camus is quoted under the logo: "We were created to live side by side with others, but we really die only for ourselves." A place for the largest banner on the main page here will cost $ 2000 per month - this is a popular b2b (business to business) service from the administration. Drug dealers know that flashy animation and assortment listing will make half of all traffic for the store. Another $ 300 will have to be paid for the status of the seller. The right to trade in a specific substance in a specific city is paid separately. For example, for the distribution of amphetamine in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Yekaterinburg, you need to pay $ 800, $ 600 and $ 500, respectively. On smaller resources, prices are several times lower: on Rutor, the status of a "seller of green" in the section for surfactants (psychoactive substances) can be bought for $ 100, the same for "financial services", and in the "flea market" section it will cost only at $ 80. Before "certification" shopkeepers are tested: the administration requires a deposit, provide recommendations from other sites, photographs of goods and much more.

The quality of the decor of a private store primarily depends on the "engine" (software core) of the site, and only then on the work of the designer. Platforms giants, like the same RAMP'a, HYDRA, Anthill allow sellers to create their own "showcases". Usually this is a "logo header", a gallery of goods with price tags, descriptions and infographics. The prestige of a point is determined by anonymous statistics - the best have at least 300 transactions for the entire time. On trading forums such as Rutor, Wayaway or Runion, personal banners cannot be placed due to security requirements - the resource does not support the javascript mechanism on which the layout is done. As a result, the proposals there are decorated with colored fonts, as if web design was stuck in the late 90s, and photos are attached, stripped of metadata.

Of course, a drug dealer can find an unscrupulous freelancer on the Internet to order the development of a corporate identity, but this can be done without leaving TORa. A simple turnkey store will cost an average of 3 thousand rubles. The most recent trend is copies of famous brands, be it Russian retail or international corporations: on RAMPe, Apple and Google stores are considered the premium segment, Amazon drug store and TsUM are always in search of a courier, while Azbuka Vkusa, Magnit and "Myasnitsky Ryad" at HYDRA offers a wide selection of "gastronomy". The excesses between the designer and the customer on the darknet are the same as elsewhere: “I studied Photoshop myself, without any teachers or guides for 5 years,” writes the staff designer of RAMPa, who has “rendered” more than 10 showcases, “I have not used and do not use ... I did not take payment in staf from any dealer, although they offered it. I'm probably the only designer who has been working here for so long, I know many here, with many in Kent. I know who was “burping” (LegalRC is one of the oldest platforms selling drugs, based on the regular, “daytime” Internet. - Open Russia), I know who is trading here. I am aware of everything. Yes, my branch was fucked up, but there are orders, and these orders are from adequate people who understand a lot about the right design, who will let you understand exactly what they need. I respect them, and I really want to work with them, because they are not only my bread, but also good people. " but there are orders, and these orders are from adequate people who understand a lot about the right design, who will let you know exactly what they need. I respect them, and I really want to work with them, because they are not only my bread, but also good people. " but there are orders, and these orders are from adequate people who understand a lot about the right design, who will let you know exactly what they need. I respect them, and I really want to work with them, because they are not only my bread, but also good people."

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Each site has curators who not only keep order in the market, like a private security company, but also inspect the quality of advertising and texts, and give advice to beginners. Drug dealers are asked to be especially careful in the descriptions: “Wrong! New Legal Mix from Ashot, smoke half a cap! Right! Smoking mixture "Ot Ashot", composition: jwh-123, ab01, bfg9000, omfg111. Completely legal! * as of 1937 ". HYDRA also has a general style guide for advertising texts: “If you do not know the composition of the product that you are selling, then write this. An unknown substance is being sold, the effect is similar to * insert a known substance *. Buyers should understand the risks associated with consuming unknown substances. In the event that you sell one substance under the guise of another, we reserve the right to revoke the seller's status, unless all buyers are refunded. " Sellers often attach recommendations for use to the lots, diluted with descriptions of possible "trips" (drug trips) and help to choose a substance to solve a specific problem, whether it is a lack of sleep, "withdrawal symptoms" (withdrawal syndrome) or a first date: "Soft exits, unlike most substitutes "" 1. No Waste and Shiza! 2. Does not contain GMOs! 3. Halal! " "Fragrant, vigorous and throat-free hashish." Halal! " "Fragrant, vigorous and throat-free hashish." Halal! " "Fragrant, vigorous and throat-free hashish."

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Europeans are considered the best suppliers - there is a stereotype on the dark web that imported goods are of higher quality. Domestic manufacturers, in order to somehow compete, describe in detail the manufacturing process and focus on originality: "We are a reliable team of professionals with vast experience" an ecological way, after the earth. During the flowering period, they were fertilized with premium Canadian fertilizers. A clear watering schedule and filtered water allowed the plants to gain strength. Manicured with a sensitive female hand."

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A photograph of a product is the only real confirmation of its existence, when anonymity extends to everyone and everything. For shop windows, the product for sale is filmed next to the business card of the store. Dealers of completely different levels of literacy and scale of deliveries come to trade, so the curators remind that “the name of the site or the nickname of the seller, written on a piece of paper, looks a little shabby,” they recommend using at least a printer. A short video of shooting from a pistol or machine gun demonstrates the serviceability of the weapon and the absence of misfires. High-quality photographs are also needed for all types of "carzhennye", that is, stolen goods: from bicycles and Lego sets to luxury clothing. In the flower shop on SilkRoad (since March 2017, the site has ceased to exist), photos of fresh bouquets regularly appear: here you can order delivery of a basket with 41 roses for 2000 rubles. The seller warns that "bouquets do not always match each other, because they are collected locally, in the regions, by different florists."

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Bouquets

Unlike sellers with regular supplies, sellers of a piece, unique product do not waste time on creative advertising, because the task is to sell this product as soon as possible. Credit cards and sim cards with corporate rates, documents and databases are accompanied by specific characteristics; for artificial urine for analysis, indicate the expiration date; privileges are listed under the journalist's certificate, with quotations from the "law on the media." If a counterfeit is on sale - indicate whether the QIWI terminal will accept fake five thousandth bills. A driver's license is available for order in two versions: with a working barcode it costs 2 thousand rubles more.

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Rarely, posts appear on the sites of the Russian TOR, allegedly from employees of state institutions - this is an illegal market for services. Several permanent stores operate at Russian Silkroad. Here they propose to "break through" a person on federal bases or, for example, add a positive credit history to the website of the National Bureau of Credit Histories (NBCH). Anonymous officers from the Federal Bailiff Service can "officially pay off your debts" for 25-35% of the amount, and an "investigator of the RF IC" can order a call to a specific number as intimidation. Fake documents with real seals of the Investigative Committee or the Moscow Security Committee are estimated at 1.5 and 2 thousand rubles, but the original copies of the security forces will cost an order of magnitude more. Traders in stolen bank cards and other financial services have large offices on almost every site. Hackers trade in hacking to order: one lot - hacking an account in one social network. The profile store “Uglyman's Cafe” on HYDR has already concluded more than 250 deals, in its price list the most expensive is access to someone else's Gmail - 15 thousand rubles. For VK, Facebook and Skype, the seller asks for the standard 12 thousand. The slightly less popular Punch-Service on Russian Silkroad tries to attract attention with statistics and pay-as-you-go: “Gmail - 80% of successful hacking, Mail.ru - 85%, Yandex - 80%, Rambler - 85%, VK - 65 %, OK - 70%, Corporate mail - 50% ”.

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Killers, contrary to popular belief, are hard to find in the Russian segment of the darknet. Those who take orders are constantly faced with the problem of “closing the deal,” that is, providing evidence. “You buy only the service of physical elimination of (not) the person you need. Everything else is at the discretion of the performer. No beatings, fractures, and even more so “to talk in the woods”. I only do murder. The average price for normal cities is a million. We do not work with high-flying politicians, deputies and similar specially protected persons. Well, that is, we are working, only it is not profitable for you to pay so much money, there is a price tag of hundreds of millions. Follow the promotions! Perhaps you will be lucky for discounts in the Urals, Siberia, and the Far East. Terms of execution are from one to three months, in difficult cases up to six months. It should be noted that this has never happened in practice. Calculations are only in bitcoins, so I am interested in the fastest execution - what if the rate collapses? "Photos of corpses are not accepted, they are too easy to make up. An alternative is calling morgues, mentioning in an incident summary, or video confirmation from a funeral.

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Business incubator
“Save 20 years of your life for only $ 50 a year” is the slogan of the business school for drug dealers that exists within RAMPa. 20 years is the maximum term under Article 228 Part 5 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, that is, the sale of drugs by a criminal group, on an especially large scale. Darknet sites help their stores to trade safely and efficiently. A course of lectures from the RAMP administration will cost 1000 dollars, the package of services includes several consultations after the start of sales. In addition, the first dealers in the city, where RAMP is not yet represented, are "subsidized" by $ 100, and for the entire Far Eastern District, dealer status is required to be paid only once, and even with a 30% discount ...
The illegal "business accelerator" went much further, participating in the production cycle itself. RAMP supplies its dealers with synthesis equipment with discounts: “Together with the LIGA designer store, a unique promotion is being held for the regions: buy one of the synthesis construction kits at a promotional price and get dealer status for TWO MONTHS for free! Stop complaining about the lack of access to wholesale, become this outlet yourself! ". The equipment for the synthesis of MDMA, mephedrone and amphetamine, together with the primary raw materials, will cost the criminal start-up 150, 120 and 75 thousand rubles, respectively.

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But that's not all. A real "Cladmen School" works here. This is the name given to drug couriers who hide goods in secluded places on the street, that is, make "bookmarks" so that the buyer can pick them up later. The job of a cladman is associated with a huge risk, law enforcement officers catch them red-handed on a regular basis, so the authors of the lectures promise students "a significant increase in survival." Instead of an exam - "100 treasures in your city, eat 6 master treasures and packing stuff." All graduates are promised employment. The engine of another major resource, HYDRs, allows drug dealers to detail sales statistics, see graphs for any period and calculate the salary for each treasureman.

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Loyalty program
Traditionally, a newly minted dealer should arrange a tasting of his product. Visitors to the Matanga store sign up for samples in a special topic, choose a substance, and write a review as a result. Not only drugs are tested, but all regular supplies and services. At the Runion forum, in the form of a demo version of the lot, they provided access to the websites of the state archive of the Orenburg region and the street video surveillance system. However, the seller of Kuban and Jack Daniel's wines for 120 rubles tells about his "closed testing": give me a detailed review. "Obviously, pensioners, disabled people and veterans of the Second World War rarely use the services of the black market, so preferential and bonus programs are more practical here. Most often, you can find discounts for journalists and students on amphetamine ("speed"). In the Space Station store on Anthill, you can buy a “lifetime” 5% discount card for 2 thousand rubles.
Advertisers in every industry know how good contests, promotions, and customer flirting can do for sales. With the support of the administration, lotteries are held at RAMP: for a minimum bet of 100 rubles, you can win 1 gram of amphetamine. A year ago, a trip to Amsterdam for two was played out. But the most popular photo contest on many platforms is the best "Signs" (brand name written with a marker on body parts). In DiamondBestShop, the winner in the Diamond Breast nomination received goods worth 100 thousand rubles, and here, in the literary competition “in memory of Hunter S. Thompson”, for the best report they gave “a prize that is not inferior in content to the famous suitcase (2 packages “Herbs” 25 grams each, 100 different tablets, 5 packs of “acid” and half a salt shaker of cocaine)”. Runion has streamed custom content: from the money of sponsors since March 2015, a fee for the best article is paid here every month. According to the results of the last competition, the authors of the articles "Legal trunk for illegal purposes", "We hijack the top ten and not only", "Organization of work on OS Whonix" and "Synthesis of trimethylfentanyl" received $ 100 each.
Regular customers have an advantage in disputes with a dealer. Absolutely all shops selling surfactants prescribe the so-called "re-mortgage policy". If the client for some reason does not find the treasure, he has the right to repeat it. Quite often, drug addicts use this mechanism in order to get a second "portion" for free. Therefore, re-mortgages are made only for those who have made more than 5 purchases in the store or on the website. For old-timers there are also discounts and first places in the queue for the "test". By the way, any seller on HYDR during the dialogue with the buyer can see the “history of the basket” of the latter: the number of transactions and requests for replacement of goods. There is an option "refuse service" - instead of a store, the user will see a blank page.

Feedback

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To legal networkers, innovations descend a little earlier than they come to the darknet. However, the TORa segment, where substances are traded, is already fully automated. There are only two currencies available - bitcoins (BTC) and rubles through Qiwi. Yes, despite the 2015 anti-cash campaign, Qiwi e-wallets and terminals remain the most popular black market financial instrument in the CIS. You can place an order through a chat with a dealer or buy a lot in an "instant bookmark store": standard, "popular" kits, like 1 gram of amphetamine or 4 brands of LSD, are hung up by the treasure men in advance throughout the city. After payment you will receive a message with the address, photos and GPS coordinates.

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Automation is responsible for the location of a particular private trader in the network of stores on the platform: his rating depends on the ratings and reviews of buyers, which the seller himself cannot edit. On SilkRoad, in the topic of a private thief, you can leave a request for any model of branded sneakers: a pair of shoes of your exact size will be stolen from the store within a month. Most often, New Balance is ordered. But it is still not accepted to argue and "pour mud" in the comments. For conflict situations, they use the Jabber messenger with PGP encryption - an artifact from the ICQ era. For even greater reliability, they often resort to the services of a “guarantor” - a third party in a transaction to whom money is transferred for temporary storage. On average, the guarantor works for 3-5% of the order amount. It is curious that guarantors on the black market use the image of “elders” and “guardians” of entire platforms. Some like the guarantor Nikkon, they are known throughout the Russian segment and even in the "clearnet". As its biography, Nikkon simply refers to the materials of Medusa and Paper, where he acted as a speaker. Some sellers on Runione believe that Nikkon contacted the press precisely as part of an advertising campaign organized by the site. By the way, there is also one of the most popular medical topics (184 pages): an unknown doctor "Katerina" promptly answers questions about overdoses, gives simple recommendations and provides samples for filling out prescriptions. organized by the site. By the way, there is also one of the most popular medical topics (184 pages): an unknown doctor "Katerina" promptly answers questions about overdoses, gives simple recommendations and provides samples for filling out prescriptions. organized by the site. By the way, there is also one of the most popular medical topics (184 pages): an unknown doctor "Katerina" promptly answers questions about overdoses, gives simple recommendations and provides samples for filling out prescriptions.

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Go offline
On the night of February 26-27, another portion of sms-spam was sent to mobile phones in the Omsk region. Only in contrast to the traditional club barkers, this time HYDRA advertised itself: "European quality, Colombian standards, Pakistani warmth and Iranian hard work." By the morning, the messages were noticed in the regional Ministry of Internal Affairs, which posted on social networks a request not to follow the links of the attackers. In March, HYDRA launched a particularly aggressive PR campaign in the Central Administrative District. Familiar graffiti with a leaf of hemp appeared on the houses. On the site indicated below there is a presentation of the project and a button "download TOR". One of the graffiti was preserved in Khamovniki.

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This is not the first attempt at a public darknet intervention in the real world, and vice versa. The border is erased. As a joke, the Moscow coffee shop “Cooperative“ Cherny ”” opened its representative office in the zone “.onion”. The PR campaign was organized by the Possible agency, having bought advertising banners, including those on RAMP. The audience is estimated at 50 thousand people.
Offers about "external" advertising now appear in all forums and service sections on the darknet. At Rutor, a certain Visitki_msk is ready to print and distribute leaflets in Moscow. A bold piece of hashish will be printed on the front side, the price per gram and a link to the store at the bottom. On the back, they will quickly explain how to install TOR and follow the link. “I undertake all responsibilities, printing and distribution in the area of your choice + a full photo report at the end of the work done. One order = one area. For example, you wanted to advertise in the Novokosino district, we agree on the number of leaflets (1000, 3000, 5000) and I distribute them only in Novokosino. I am ready to work throughout the Moscow region, as well as the nearest Moscow region. Places of distribution - near clubs, bars, as well as on cars for windshield wipers."

Please note that the manufacture and distribution of narcotic substances or their analogs, the storage and sale of weapons, fraud with bank cards, the manufacture of counterfeit banknotes and documents are strictly prosecuted by law. The mentioned trademarks are not illegal and are not related to the described market. All information was obtained using open sources, and the quoted advertising messages are not a public offer.
 
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