Security News > 2021 > April > Italian charged with hiring “dark web hitman” to murder his ex-girlfriend

In a brief yet fascinating press release, Europol just announced the arrest of an Italian man who is accused of "Hiring a hitman on the dark web".

No victim targeted for murder via the dark web is ever going to take much comfort in the fact that their proposed assassin "Might not have been real."

Intriguingly, hitmen-for-hire were a feature of what is perhaps the best-known dark web investigation and prosecution ever - the arrest and conviction of Ross Ulbricht, founder and operator of the Silk Road online bazaar.

Using the online moniker "Dread Pirate Roberts," or "DPR," Ulbricht controlled and oversaw every aspect of Silk Road, and managed a small staff of paid, online administrators who assisted with the day-to-day operation of the site.

Through his ownership and operation of Silk Road, Ulbricht reaped commissions worth tens of millions of dollars [] Ulbricht even solicited six murders-for-hire in connection with operating the site, although there is no evidence that these murders were actually carried out.

There are many perfectly legitimate reasons why you might want to use something like the Tor Browser, even if your purpose for being pseudo-anonymous online is as simple as wanting to browse the web without being tracked and traced as much as usual.

News URL

https://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2021/04/08/italian-charged-with-hiring-dark-web-hitman-to-murder-his-ex-girlfriend/