Over the weekend, Moscow residents and the Russian media were surprised to see electronic billboards featuring a woman in a futuristic mask and the words 'Come to me if you're looking for the best'. The brand was BlackSprut, a Russia-linked darknet drug trading platform that mainly serves clients in Eastern Europe. It is unclear why the advertisements were allowed, but BlackSprut is known to support the Kremlin and has donated cryptocurrency to pro-Russian paramilitary fighters. Another Russia-linked drug marketplace, Solaris, was hacked by its rival Kraken in January and allegedly donated money to the pro-Kremlin group Killnet. This speaks to a certain level of permissiveness in Russia, which is considered a safe haven for illegal drugs and a fertile ground for darknet platforms. Last year, funds received by the sanctioned Russian crypto exchange Garantex accounted for most of the illicit cryptocurrency use worldwide - a record $20 billion. Compared to other marketplaces, BlackSprut has an entry point on the public web, making it more visible. The marketplace uses the U.S.-sanctioned crypto exchange Bitzlato to process illegal transactions. It is difficult for law enforcement to capture darknet marketplaces because they are anonymous and can easily migrate to new infrastructure. In Russia, cybercrimes are usually investigated slowly and not very efficiently, and the country often refuses to extradite its cybercriminals abroad.
This Cyber News was published on therecord.media. Publication date: Mon, 06 Feb 2023 23:21:03 +0000