At the time of browsing the internet, checking your a vlog on YouTube or check your email, you are accessing the “visible web”. This visible web is a type of web which can be accessed by anyone through the ordinary search engines easily without any problem. You should note that 4% of the WWW (World Wide Web is considered as visible web which is also known as surface web. The remaining 96% of the worldwide web is the invisible web (deep web). The deep web is any type of content which cannot be crawled or indexed by the search engines. It is proved that the deep web is 500 times the surface web size. This deep web is completely anonymous which mainly raise the question of legality. There is a question which comes in every mind is that whether accessing the deep web sites is legal or not through the browsers named as TOR. This article would guide you whether it is legal or not to access the deep web.
Accessing the Deep Web
If you want to access the Deep Web, then you should note that the dedicated browser is highly required for it. The Tor is the commonly used browser used for accessing the deep web followed by Freenet and I2P. You would not be able to access the information on deep web directly and files would be hosted on different type of servers through networking. This type of accessing data is mainly encrypted and really not an easy task to track where the users are situated and what type of data or information they are going through.
Yes, it is complexly legal to use Tor and same type of browsers and it is not illegal at all. Such types of software are used by the police, military, whistleblowers and journalist to handle their privacy online. Tor is completely free software and it is easy to use also. It conceals the User’s IP address which helps in preventing any metadata or personal data from being taken about the users.
Tor and other private browsers offer anonymity which is a main reason behind the increase of illegal and criminal activity. There are several drugs and weapons selling type business have appeared on the deep web markets. Lots of people are conducting their illegal business and other bad activities through the help of Tor browser. You should note that it is legal to access the deep web with an anonymous or dedicated browser but there are several websites on the deep web which is completely illegal to access.
When is it illegal?
- Child pornography: According to the recent research, it has been proved that over 80 percent of the visitors on the deep web access the child pornography sites. They sometime viewed it and sometime uploaded. In most of the countries, viewing or even uploading child pornography is a big offence. So, if you are browsing through the deep web, then make sure you are not access the child pornography sites. This is not legal at all and can get you convicted for just deep web browsing.
- Drugs: Drugs are the second most sold, bought and viewed item on the deep web. It is really not censored by the government which makes it the perfect marketplace for the buyers and vendors to get their fix. If you are into selling drugs, then you are into the dark web. Buying and selling products on the dark web is totally illegal from copyrighted eBooks to hacked credit cards.
Key Takeaways
If you are using a Tor browser to access the deep web, than you should know that there is no guarantee that you are fully anonymous and totally safe. Due to the Deep and Dark web nature, Tor users can easily hack other Tor users to get the information about them.
After all, it is legal to use, users should be careful about the risks associates with it. The deep web browsing is not illegal but only if you are simply browsing the deep web. If you are planning to download or buy something which is available or sold on the deep web, there is a higher chance that it is totally illegal and it would be becoming an illegal act for sure.
In short words, anything which you can find legal in the real word would be legal also on the deep web. For example; browsing the internet is also legal on the deep web. There are some activities which is not legal in the real world which includes selling drugs and weapons, prostitutions and leaking government vital documents.
So, at last if you would like to access the deep web, than surely you can go ahead. While accessing the deep web, you should always stay away from the illegal activities which can put you in trouble later.
