On Feb. 6th, 2019, Steve Gallo gave a presentation to CJ Club members on “The Dark Web.” Steve is a 2017 NEC graduate with a B.A. in Criminal Justice. He currently works in Concord, New Hampshire in the IT Department at Concord Hospital. Steve’s presentation explained what the “Dark Web” is, and how many cyber-criminals have leveraged it in various ways to commit their crimes, ranging from illegal drug distribution, child pornography, to fraud scams.
Gallo gave a detailed overview of the “Dark Web,” and specifically the “Tor” network which he explained is a group of volunteer-operated servers that allow individuals to maintain their privacy and anonymity.
Tor’s users employ the network by connecting through a series of virtual tunnels rather than making direct connections. Tor makes it possible for users to hide their locations. Using such protocols as “onion services,” which are essentially hidden services, Tor users connect without knowing the other’s network identity. Increasingly, the Tor network has been used by cyber criminals to accomplish their criminal activity, by using “malware” and “bots,” thus hiding their command and control infrastructures.
Gallo’s talk was enlightening and well-delivered. In addition, he recently gave back to the CJ Club by making a $100 donation.
