Canadian Police Uncover Dark Net Gun Market

Most police forces around the world have not really tackled the crime of the Dark Net, but the Canadian Police are hoping to continue investigations with guns on the Darknet.

Criminals are using the darker corners of the Internet, hard-to-track digital currency and creative shipping techniques to sell illicit guns to Canadians, the RCMP, (Royal Canadian Mounted Police), warns.

The message comes as thousands of young people across North America demand an end to gun violence, and the Trudeau government moves to tighten laws on the licensing, sale and tracing of firearms.

The emergence of the darknet, the hidden depths of the Internet accessible only through tailored software, is posing new challenges for authorities trying to tackle gun trafficking, said Rob O’Reilly, interim director of firearms regulatory services at the RCMP.

While police have shut down rogue online markets like Silk Road in recent years, others quickly pop up in the deepest realms of cyberspace, O’Reilly recently told a national symposium on gangs and guns.

He pointed to the Berlusconi online market, which at last count had 234 listings for weapons including AR-15 rifles, AK-47s, various handguns and countless rounds of ammunition.

The firearms are sold alongside opioids, heroin, cocaine, malware, stolen data, fraud tools, ransomware, pilfered credit cards and even depleted uranium, radioactive Polonium-210 and deadly poisons like ricin.

O’Reilly displayed a photo of an AR-15 magazine and ammunition shipped from a vendor in Montana to an Ontario buyer who had no firearms licence.

The seller made a number of gun-related sales via the darknet before being arrested, each time wrapping the products in plastic and then in Mylar bags before finally disguising them in food packaging.

“Darknet vendors resort to very ingenious means to ship firearms and related components,” O’Reilly said. “In the darknet community, this is known as stealth shipping, and the intent is to disguise or hide the actual contents from law enforcement and border services.”

Pistols have been sent in gaming consoles, computer hard drives, hairdryers and blocks of chocolate, he said. “We’ve even seen rifles shipped behind flat-screen televisions.”

The digital revolution has spawned tools that allow buyers to visit sites like Berlusconi anonymously and make purchases without leaving telltale signs.

The Onion Router network, known as Tor, is often used by government agencies, activists, journalists and whistleblowers who may want to shield their online activities, O’Reilly noted. However, it can also be employed by people with less noble intentions, such as illicit firearms buyers.

Similarly, crypto-currencies like Bitcoin, the most accepted form of currency on the darknet markets, are used to obscure the transaction details from authorities.

“Such currencies present a real challenge for law enforcement because it doesn’t physically reside somewhere, making it hard to trace without special, very expensive software and highly trained personnel to do the work,” O’Reilly said.

Firearms and related materials are more readily available than ever before due to access to global markets through the Internet, he added. Different international laws mean some firearms components and accessories can be illegal in one country but completely legal in another.

“This challenge has existed for some time in regards to our neighbours to the south, however it is compounded in a borderless online market that is truly international,” O’Reilly said. “Once imported to Canada, these components can be easily finished and assembled through online tutorials, the results of which are often completely untraceable firearms, sometimes known as ghost guns.”

At the same time, gun sales are occurring through more visible online vendors as well as internet forums.

Police training needs must be “continually updated” to reflect the rapidly evolving online environment, O’Reilly said. “Conducting online investigations, whether on the darknet or on the surface web, requires a very specific skill set.”

Globe and Mail:

You Might Also Read:

Cybercrime in Canada:

Dark Web Fraud Undetectable By Police:

« What Does GDPR Mean For the Retail Industry?
Russian Bots Promote Fake News »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

Directory of Cyber Security Suppliers

Directory of Cyber Security Suppliers

Our Supplier Directory lists 7,000+ specialist cyber security service providers in 128 countries worldwide. IS YOUR ORGANISATION LISTED?

Resecurity

Resecurity

Resecurity is a cybersecurity company that delivers a unified platform for endpoint protection, risk management, and cyber threat intelligence.

BackupVault

BackupVault

BackupVault is a leading provider of automatic cloud backup and critical data protection against ransomware, insider attacks and hackers for businesses and organisations worldwide.

CSI Consulting Services

CSI Consulting Services

Get Advice From The Experts: * Training * Penetration Testing * Data Governance * GDPR Compliance. Connecting you to the best in the business.

Syxsense

Syxsense

Syxsense brings together endpoint management and security for greater efficiency and collaboration between IT management and security teams.

Exploit Database (EDB)

Exploit Database (EDB)

The Exploit Database is a CVE compliant archive of public exploits and corresponding vulnerable software, developed for use by penetration testers and vulnerability researchers.

National Crime Agency (NCA) - United Kingdom

National Crime Agency (NCA) - United Kingdom

The NCA's Cyber Crime Unit focuses on critical cyber incidents in the UK as well as longer-term activity against the criminals and the services on which they depend.

vArmour

vArmour

vArmour is the industry’s first distributed security system that provides insight and control for multi-cloud environments.

Cipher Security

Cipher Security

Cipher Security provides unique robustness tests and penetration tests, as well as customizable development services for vendors and providers.

National Defense Industry Association (NDIA) - USA

National Defense Industry Association (NDIA) - USA

The National Defense Industrial Association Cyber Division contributes to US national security by promoting interaction between the cyber defense industry, government and military.

LRQA

LRQA

LRQA is an award-winning global provider of cybersecurity services, bringing innovative thought leadership to the ever-evolving cybersecurity marketplace.

ThreatQuotient

ThreatQuotient

ThreatQuotient delivers an open and extensible threat intelligence platform to provide defenders the context, customization and collaboration needed for increased security effectiveness.

Proficio

Proficio

Proficio is a world-class Managed Security Service Provider providing managed detection and response solutions, 24×7 security monitoring and advanced data breach prevention services worldwide.

IPification

IPification

IPification is a highly secure, credential-less, network-based authentication solution for frictionless user experience on mobile and IoT devices.

Ackcent Cybersecurity

Ackcent Cybersecurity

Ackcent's mission is to help our clients to protect their critical digital assets by providing them with a portfolio of specialised professional services.

Security Weaver

Security Weaver

Security Weaver is a leading provider of governance, risk and compliance management (GRCM) software.

IDX

IDX

IDX is the leading consumer privacy platform built for agility in the digital age.

Regulativ.ai

Regulativ.ai

Regulativ.ai is an innovative and comprehensive platform, driven by AI, to address the regulatory and compliance needs of Cyber Security Regulatory compliance and reporting.

Guardsman Cyber Intelligence (GCI)

Guardsman Cyber Intelligence (GCI)

GCI provides proven cyber intelligence solutions to protect your business against ever present physical and digital threats shadowing your online business.

Sababa Security

Sababa Security

Sababa Security is the first Italian innovation cyber security vendor, that provides security products, training, and managed services to protect diverse IT and OT environments.

BuddoBot

BuddoBot

BuddoBot has been a pioneering force in cybersecurity and information technology since 2008.