The darknet is not a hellhole, it’s an answer to internet privacy

On the back of scandals such as those that engulfed the NSA and Cambridge Analytica, online privacy and data protection have become major political concerns. Many of us worry that private companies and governments know more about us than our closest friends and relatives.

One alternative is to switch to the darknet, which offers anonymity and protection from those who keep track of what people do online. Yet it is controversial, to say the least. The darknet has been associated with everything from drug and weapons dealers to child porn, hitmen and identity thieves. Even the name suggests a dark, sinister space. Yet when you actually investigate this encrypted network, the reality is a bit more complicated. And it’s time to call the darknet’s sleazy reputation into question.