There’s a Global Crackdown on the Dark Web Happening Right Now

"We can hunt down these criminals wherever they hide."

Hunting Criminals

Criminals are going to have a tougher time using the dark web for illegal activity.

On Tuesday, the FBI announced the seizure of Deep Dot Web, a website that provided links to dark web marketplaces — the latest example of law enforcement cracking down on the shadowy side of the internet.

Web of Crime

The dark web is a lot like the "surface web" you're probably using right now.

The difference is you can't access dark web sites through your standard internet browser — first you need to download special software, like the Tor browser, because sites on the dark web exist on an encrypted network.

This affords dark web users an extra layer of anonymity, which has made the dark web attractive to criminals.

Cracking Down

The FBI's seizure of Deep Dot Web comes just days after Europol police led an international take down of two dark web marketplaces: the Silkkitie, also known as the Valhalla Marketplace, and the Wall Street Market, the second-largest marketplace on the dark web.

"We continue to keep pace with sophisticated actors on the dark web by increasing our technical abilities and working even more closely with our international law enforcement partners," U.S. Attorney Nick Hanna said in a news release on the Wall Street take down. "While they lurk in the deepest corners of the internet, this case shows that we can hunt down these criminals wherever they hide."

READ MORE: Feds take down dark web index and news site Deep Dot Web [The Verge]

More on the dark web: People Are Selling Weapons on the Dark Web