I Stalked a Scammer on the Dark Web Here’s What I Learned About OSINT
1 min read
Summary
The writer stumbled across their own identity being sold on the dark web for $12.50, and became angry, but instead of panicking, they decided to learn how to fight back, which taught them a lot about OSINT (open-source intelligence) and the dark web.
The dark web is not as mysterious as people think, it is like a digital black market with stolen data, drugs, fake documents, and many catfish scams, and most users are not experts.
Examples of sloppy behaviour included an Instagram handle left in a Bitcoin transaction, and ransomware groups like LockBit that publish victim data if they don’t get paid.
The writer ended by saying it was time to clean up the mess and make the internet a safer place.