"High Demand for Hacker Services on Dark Web Forums"

According to new research by Positive Technologies, 90 percent of users of dark web forums are seeking hackers who can give them a specific resource or provide a user database. The study involved exploring the ten most prominent forums on the dark web that provide services for those who want to hack websites as well as a place for hackers to buy and sell databases. The study's findings highlight the growing demand for hackers' services and stolen data, ignited by the increase in internet use by organizations and individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Researchers found that the most common goal of dark web forum users was to gain access to a web resource, as suggested by 69 percent of ad inquiries. The next most common goal was to gain access to a user or client database from a targeted resource, with this making up 21 percent of all ad inquires. The researchers pointed out that the dark web forum users, most interested in getting this type of information, were competitors and spammers who seek to obtain lists of addresses that can be used to carry out phishing attacks targeting a particular audience. Only 7 percent of forum messages involved individuals offering website hacking services, while 3 percent focused on advertising hacking tools, programs, and sharing hacking experiences. The researchers also observed a high demand for access to e-commerce websites. Prices for purchasing and selling hacking services and website access were seen ranging from $50 to $2000. This article continues to discuss key findings from Positive Technologies' analysis of dark web forums regarding users' most common goals and the most demanded services on these forums, as well as the need to strengthen web application security. 

Infosecurity Magazine reports "High Demand for Hacker Services on Dark Web Forums"