Most damaging cybercrime services are cheap on the dark web, study finds

Ransomware, the most widely used cyberattacks, cost as little as $66 per kit, while hiring a hacker can be as cheap as $250.

October 15, 2021 04:29 pm | Updated 04:30 pm IST

The dark web is a popular marketplace for illicit services, allowing cybercriminals to benefit from its encryption and anonymous features.

The dark web is a popular marketplace for illicit services, allowing cybercriminals to benefit from its encryption and anonymous features.

The most damaging cybercrime attacks like ransomware kits and sophisticated targeted attacks, cost less than $500 on the dark web, indicating how easy and affordable conducting cyberattacks can be.

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Most cyberattacks cost anywhere between $66 and $500 on the dark web and the success rates of crime attempts are increasing, allowing criminals to profit thousands of dollars from a single intrusion, research by VPN service provider Atlas VPN has found.

The dark web is a popular marketplace for illicit services, allowing cybercriminals to benefit from its encryption and anonymous features. Moroever, the dark web requires a special software to access which could help criminals shield themselves from unwanted attention, according to Atlas VPN.

Technology giant Microsoft this month also revealed data on the cost of cyberattacks. It noted that spearphishing attacks cost between $100 and $1,000, and have a much higher success rate than regular phishing attacks than those that are sent out in bulk.

Also Read | Microsoft says it mitigated one of the largest DDoS attacks

Denial-of-service (DoS) attacks are the most common type of attacks, with hackers charging around $311 to send a barrage of DoS attacks for a month. These attacks are meant to flood a specific network with traffic to the extent it becomes unavailable to its users, the report noted.

Ransomware, the most widely used cyberattacks, cost as little as $66 per kit, while hiring a hacker can be as cheap as $250.

Other popular darknet services include counter anti-virus and money laundering services, that help hackers bypass security restrictions.

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