Is Your Business Exposed to the Dark Web?

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Has your business been exposed to the Dark Web? Most people don’t know what the Dark Web is let alone if their information is on it. The “dark web” is hidden part of the world wide web that requires special software to access it. It is rarely seen by the average person. Everything that is done there is anonymous. Once inside, web sites, services, and credentials can be accessed. For example, if someone in your company used their work email as a user login on a third-party website and that website got breached, the logins and passwords of that website are now compromised. So ultimately what is compromised is their work email along with a password.

General researchers have said that 4% of the internet is visible to the general public. The remaining 96% of the internet is made up of the Deep and Dark Web. The Deep Web is a place that you can only have access with special permission. This requires you to register, sign up, or create an account or profile with login credentials for access. For example this is most eCommerce, personal finance sites like online banking, and web entertainment like Netflix. These types of pages are not indexed so that they aren’t searchable by someone like Google. Lastly, there is the Dark Web. Like the Deep web, these pages aren’t indexed or searchable as well. They are also not visible to a normal browser like Chrome or Firefox. You need a special browser that can peal back the layers of the web so you can access this portion of the internet. Once there, you see people selling drugs, hacking software, selling credentials, counterfeit money and other illegal things.

What should you do to protect your personal and business identity?

Preventative steps and awareness are the best way to protect your identity getting into the wrong hands. Here are 5 ways you can do now:

  1. Use a two-factor authentication or 2FA when logging into your accounts. If someone else is trying to log into your accounts, you will be notified.
  2. Review your bank statements and look for signs of suspicious activity. Notify the credit bureaus immediately.
  3. Review your credit history to make sure it is accurate. Make sure you haven’t been compromise and if you have, take steps to protect yourself and update records.
  4. Apply for a security freeze with credit bureaus. This is a free option now. This will restrict access to credit report unless you release the freeze.
  5. If you have been compromised, immediately contact the credit agencies. This will make it harder for a thief to open an account in your name. Be proactive and don’t delay in reporting misconduct.

As your service provider, we believe Dark Web ID acts like an early warning system by helping to mitigate the effects caused by a breach. We will be here to help you in case of any breach related damage, but knowing about it early or preventing it altogether, is always a better launching point to ensure you are able to do what you do best ”. If you would like to run a Dark Web scan, contact Protek at 844.796.1717 or sign up for a free scan here.