A news.com.au investigation has exposed the shocking extent of Australia’s online drug trade, with $7.5 million in illicit substances available to buy in any given week. It locks your messages so only the right person can read them—super handy when you’re dealing with sensitive stuff on the dark web. Markets like Incognito even nudge you to use it for extra peace of mind. The problem for law enforcement is that there are still plenty more criminals operating on the darknet and still plenty of places to hide. Don’t think for a second that the intelligence community and security agencies are not operating in those areas, but on the darknet you can choose anonymity. The months and years after Silk Road’s closure were marked by a greatly increased number of shorter-lived markets as well as semi-regular law enforcement takedowns, hacks, scams and voluntary closures.
We rank markets based on what we believe is important for you and let you choose what works for you best. Nexus Market’s walletless model and robust escrow make it one of the safer darknet venues—if you follow strict OpSec. Treat every step (onion link verification, PGP encryption, Monero payments) as non-optional.
The Top 7 Dark Web Marketplaces In 2025
“Also, we know that drugs sold on the dark net tend to be better quality and less adulterated than drugs that are traded on the street as well.” “So I think the very large portions that we see of the darknet methamphetamine trade concentrated in Australia really reflects the relative lack of popularity of that drug in Europe and places like that.” The data was collected over a single month and looked at countries with the largest involvement in the dark net drugs trade. Unfortunately, cryptomarkets are unable to resolve the worst, intractable systemic drug violence in source countries such as Mexico. The NSW and Victorian police forces declined to comment specifically on news.com.au’s research, but both said they were aware of Australia’s online drug trade.
Australia Emerges As A Leader In The Global Darknet Drugs Trade
Listings aren’t public, but it’s steady as heck with 2FA and top-shelf encryption. They’re hinting at going decentralized in 2025—less downtime, more trust, right in line with the decentralized trend. The site’s slick, with vendor stats updating live and a checkout that’s a breeze. I’ve used it a few times, and it’s never let me down—great for folks who like their dark web with a modern twist. Whilst a great many products are sold, drugs dominate the numbers of listings, with the drugs including cannabis, MDMA, modafinil,108109110 LSD, cocaine, and designer drugs. JCODE also targets the trafficking of weapons and other illicit goods and services on the internet.
According to research presented by the Victorian Alcohol and Drug Association Conference, Australia is a leading country in the darknet drugs trade. The report highlights how we have more online drug vendors per capita than any other nation except for the Netherlands. Australian crypto market vendors sell disproportionately more ecstasy and opioids globally. We also lead the way with more than a “quarter of the world’s dark net methamphetamine trade (27.1%). Our analysis also focused on the price of illicit drugs that are sold on the darknet. Here we found large disparities between the prices of illicit drugs sold by foreign-based cryptomarket vendors and those located in Australia.
How To Safely Navigate Nexus Market (Darknet) Without Getting Scammed
Some are looking for illegal stuff they can’t buy elsewhere, like drugs or counterfeit documents. The first category includes classic marketplaces, which serve as one-stop shops for a wide range of illegal goods. These platforms sell everything from drugs and fake IDs to weapons and hacking tools, resembling a digital black-market bazaar. Established in 2019, Russian Market is a well-known and highly regarded data store on the dark web, specializing in the sale of PII and various forms of stolen data. Despite its name, the marketplace operates primarily in English and serves a global audience.
Australia Emerges As A Leader In The Global Darknet Drugs Trade
- The new research maps out which countries are the big buyers and sellers of narcotics in this shadowy part of the internet.
- It’s not the biggest player like Abacus, but it’s got a loyal crew and uptime that rarely blinks.
- A news.com.au investigation has exposed the shocking extent of Australia’s online drug trade, with $7.5 million in illicit substances available to buy in any given week.
- For digital products, this means providing the customer with a download link that doesn’t connect back to the vendor.
- Australians are increasingly using eBay-style darknet marketplaces or cryptomarkets to buy and sell illicit drugs.
- Its commitment to privacy, diverse product offerings, and robust security measures make it a preferred choice for users seeking discreet transactions within the darknet.
The capital city of Western Australia, Perth, recorded the second-highest consumption of cannabis and methylamphetamine. Various capital cities throughout Australia have high levels of drug and alcohol consumption. Below are some of the most notable areas and the most-abused drugs consumed in them. I2P is another decentralized peer-to-peer network using end-to-end encryption for your traffic.
AFP Hunts Australian Dark Net Users After Sites Taken Down
These findings indicate that the prices of Australian darknet drugs are much more closely correlated to local street prices than they are to those sold by foreign vendors. Only methamphetamine was significantly cheaper when purchased from an Australian cryptomarket vendor compared to a local street dealer, with prices approximately 45% lower when sourced online. The relatively high prices charged by local cryptomarket vendors are likely to be interpreted as signs of success by Australian border protection agencies. They are evidence that while foreign vendors are typically prepared to send illicit drugs to Australia, many local consumers are averse to the risks this entails. The perception that drugs may be intercepted entering the country therefore contributes to the high prices that local consumers pay for illicit drugs.
How The Likely Exit Scam Unfolded
TRM Labs assesses the event was likely an exit scam, though a covert law enforcement seizure cannot be ruled out. TRM Labs analysis shows that nearly half of the marketplaces launched in 2024 accepted only Monero — a sharp increase from just over one-third in 2023. This signals a growing preference among darknet operators for obfuscation and anti-surveillance tools.
The other enabler, of course, is the maturation of info-space that allows these marketplaces not to exist in a physical place. The proliferation of cloud services means everyone’s becoming more comfortable with virtual private servers. So the info infrastructure is also helping people to be able to do these things. For all that is written about the dark net, most people struggle to understand it. Here’s a simple, user-friendly explainer of what it is, how it is used, and the questions it raises as we drift deeper into the digital age.
Q: What Happens If I Can’t Afford A Criminal Lawyer?
Queensland’s capital city, Brisbane, had a much lower average consumption of nicotine and other drugs. Another example of the biggest Australian state with drug problems is Victoria. Sydney, the capital city of New South Wales, held the record for the second-highest consumption of heroin. It takes inspiration from TOR, having been built from its source code, so you can expect a similar experience and connection.
People can access the dark web via a special browser, which similarly hides the identity of visitors and makes transactions nearly impossible to track. Bitcoin’s blockchain is too leaky these days, and markets like Archetyp going Monero-only prove it. Mixers help, sure, but XMR’s built-in privacy is why I’ve switched my stash over.
Faced with the decision between profit seeking and self preservation, Abacus’s admins likely chose the latter in light of Archetyp’s seizure and the surge in new users that elevated Abacus’s profile. Furthermore, after four years of operating and generating substantial profits, the admins likely lost motivation to continue and chose to exit the ecosystem to preserve their freedom and financial gains. World’s leading professional association of Internet Research Specialists – We deliver Knowledge, Education, Training, and Certification in the field of Professional Online Research.
For 2025, they’re teasing AI-powered search—could make digging through listings a breeze, which I’m hyped for since their catalog’s already hefty. The site’s unique—loads fast, looks sharp, and vendors get treated right, keeping turnover low. I’ve used it; shipping’s discreet—plain packages or DeadDrops—and uptime’s been flawless, rivaling Abacus. It’s not as community-driven as Bohemia, but the polish makes up for it—feels like a pro operation, not a fly-by-night deal.
