According to the head of a crime prevention unit, the NBI(National Bureau of Investigation) and additional authorities have increased surveillance of the trading of illegal items on the dark web this year, but without adequate funds, the job will become increasingly difficult.
The term “dark web” refers to internet sites that require specific software or setups to access and cannot be accessed using standard web browsers. A person’s online behaviour can be anonymized on that area of the internet.
More than 90% of the dark web activity tracked by Finnish authorities involved the sale of illegal narcotics.Nevertheless, chief inspector Lars Henriksson, who is the head of the NBI’s crime prevention unit, stated that winning in unlawful operations on the underground network is not without risk.
“Anonymity does not preclude the possibility of being caught and charged criminally. Contrary to common opinion, criminal conduct on the dark web is not beyond law enforcement’s reach “In a statement, Henriksson added.
Dark web drugs usual in Finland
Nonetheless, even when compared to other countries, the level of drug trafficking over the anonymous web remains large in Finland.
According to an international drug use survey, Finland had the highest proportion of people who obtained narcotics on the dark web. Approximately 45 percent of the nearly 2,200 respondents who had used or purchased drugs in Finland in the previous year indicated they obtained them through the anonymous network.
The UK was the next-highest scoring country, with 29 percent of respondents reporting the same, while Australia was third with 15 percent.
All of the Nordic nations were excluded from the international comparison due to low response numbers. In Norway, 14% of respondents indicated they had acquired drugs on the dark web, while 4% of Danish defendants said they had done so.
Law enforcement monitoring of the network has also revealed that purchasers and dealers of illegal substances as recreational drugs span a wide age range, and that users of the dark web are not unified by any particular social status.
As perHenriksson, the network also aided in the growth of the illegal drug trade to progressively remote provinces of Finland, and criminal activity was no longer centred in major cities.
He stated that casual recreational drug users were among the most likely to be drawn to the dark web to obtain their narcotics since they did not have the relationships or acquaintances required.
Platforms and marketplaces used to trade drugs on the dark web are continually evolving. According to the agency, the international drug trade is increasingly focused on Finland.
The NBI and other authorities began monitoring the dark web this year with additional funds from Parliament.
However, Henriksson highlighted in the statement that the outlook for reducing crime remained hard due to insufficient resources and the ability to conduct police operations online.
