Instructor: In this lesson, we're going to discuss 2 2
the deep web and the dark web 3 3
and how they relate to our role 4 4
as cybersecurity analysts. 5 5
Now, the deep web and the dark web are both parts 6 6
of the internet that are not easily accessible 7 7
through traditional search engines 8 8
such as Google or Bing or something like that. 9 9
However, these two terms do not relate 10 10
to the exact same thing. 11 11
So I think it's important that we start out 12 12
by defining what we mean by the deep web and the dark web. 13 13
Now, the deep web is going to refer to the portion 14 14
of the internet that is not indexed by search engines. 15 15
This includes search engines like Google or Bing 16 16
and other ones like that 17 17
and this means that we're looking at things 18 18
like private databases, subscription-based websites 19 19
and other content that is not publicly accessible. 20 20
For example, if you need to access medical 21 21
and scientific research, university libraries 22 22
and government database, 23 23
all these could be considered part of the deep web. 24 24
It's important to realize 25 25
that the deep web contains sensitive information 26 26
that is not meant to be searchable by the general public 27 27
and the majority of it is not considered illegal 28 28
or malicious or nefarious. 29 29
On the other hand, the dark web refers to a specific part 30 30
of the deep web that's used for illegal activities 31 31
such as the buying and selling of drugs, weapons 32 32
and stolen personal information such as credit card data. 33 33
When you think about the dark web, often you associate it 34 34
with things like anonymity and encryption 35 35
and this allows people to remain hidden 36 36
in terms of their location and their activity 37 37
whenever they're using the dark web 38 38
and this helps hide their activities 39 39
from law enforcement and other authorities. 40 40
The dark web is considered to be really rich 41 41
in criminal activity and it's a high risk area 42 42
where hacking and illicit activities occur all of the time. 43 43
Now, accessing the dark web 44 44
does require specialized software 45 45
such as using Tor, which is the onion router 46 46
and knowledge of how to navigate the dark web, 47 47
as well as taking extensive security measures 48 48
to protect the user's identity 49 49
and location when you're accessing it. 50 50
Now, the dark web was never designed 51 51
to be used by general users and accessing the dark web 52 52
without appropriate knowledge and precautions 53 53
can really put you at risk 54 54
of encountering illegal activities, malware, 55 55
or being targeted by cyber criminals. 56 56
So how can a cybersecurity professional use 57 57
these two areas of the internet, 58 58
the deep web and the dark web 59 59
to better protect their enterprise networks? 60 60
Well, let's start out with the deep web. 61 61
Cybersecurity professionals can use the deep web 62 62
as a source of information to gather intelligence 63 63
on potential threats. 64 64
This can include researching known vulnerabilities 65 65
and specific systems or software, 66 66
as well as monitoring for new exploits 67 67
or attack methods that have been developed by hackers. 68 68
This information can then be used 69 69
to develop more effective security strategies 70 70
and improve the overall security of your enterprise network. 71 71
Now, when it comes to the dark web, on the other hand, 72 72
cybersecurity professionals are going to use this 73 73
to monitor for stolen data or information 74 74
that's related to their organization. 75 75
This can include things like employee 76 76
or customers personal information, login credentials 77 77
or sensitive intellectual property. 78 78
By monitoring the dark web, 79 79
cybersecurity professionals can quickly identify 80 80
if your information has been compromised 81 81
and they can then take appropriate action 82 82
to help protect their organization and your information. 83 83
Cybersecurity professionals can also use the dark web 84 84
to track the activities of known 85 85
or suspected cyber criminal groups, 86 86
to identify any patterns or trends in their methods 87 87
and techniques and other changes that are happening 88 88
in the criminal underworld. 89 89
This information can then all be used 90 90
to help develop more effective defensive strategies 91 91
to protect our organizations against future attacks. 92 92
Another important use of the dark web 93 93
by cybersecurity professionals is to be able 94 94
to track the prices and availability of tools and services 95 95
that are commonly used in cyber attacks. 96 96
This can help give us an indication of the level 97 97
of sophistication of cyber criminals and their goals, 98 98
as well as which types of attacks are trending these days. 99 99
So when you think about the deep web and the dark web, 100 100
I want you to remember that it's a powerful resource 101 101
for us as cybersecurity professionals. 102 102
We can use the deep web to help gather intelligence 103 103
on potential threats, while we can use the dark web 104 104
to monitor for stolen data 105 105
and track the activities of cyber criminals. 106 106
This way, we can develop more effective security strategies 107 107
that better protect our enterprise networks 108 108
from future cyber attacks. 109 109
As always though, it's important to note 110 110
that if you're going to be using the dark web, 111 111
you must follow best practices in cybersecurity 112 112
to protect yourself and your network, 113 113
as well as use the appropriate security measures 114 114
to ensure that your identity 115 115
and location are not compromised 116 116
because you don't want a bunch of cyber criminals 117 117
going after you personally because they found you 118 118
on the dark web looking for information 119 119
on the different types of attacks 120 120
that they were trying to conduct.