Ajay Kanth By

KOZHIKODE: With online activities becoming the order of the day, enforcement agencies in Kerala are facing another major challenge in dealing with the underbelly of net activity ‘Darknet’ through which clandestine drug deals are taking place between sellers and buyers.

Though cyber cells of the agencies are trying their best to face the challenge, intelligence inputs reveal that drug cartels are using the virtual dark internet world for all sorts of illegal transactions in the state. Darknet could be accessed by only those who use special browsers with encrypted software.

“The Cyberdome is monitoring Darknet activities. We are doing it now in tie-up with two companies but we are also going to establish our own Security Operation Centre (SOC) and Network Operational Centre (NOC) to spruce up monitoring,” said Cyberdome Nodal Officer and Thiruvananthapuram Range Inspector General Manoj Abraham.

According to cyber security experts, it is literally impossible to monitor and trace Darknet deals locally. “Only at the national gateway level, we will be able to get any indicators about such activities,” said Manu P Zacharia, Cyber security expert and member of Data Security Council of India.

The World Drug Report, 2016 released by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) already points out drug trafficking through Darknet. “The Narcotics Control Bureau in coordination with other agencies is making efforts for interdiction in the use of Darknet for drug trafficking,” said a senior NCB officer. In 2015, the NCB succeeded in intercepting two cases of Darknet transactions. This led to seizure of 2,598 blots of LSD and 2 grams of cocaine. Six arrests were made in connection with these two cases.

Agencies confirmed that there are hundreds of drug ‘vendors’ who operate on Darknet and remain untraceable. “Internet penetration is high in Kerala and youngsters in the state are more net savvy. Nowadays, a ninth or tenth standard student knows about using proxy browsers in his computer which never records or detects his net usage pattern,” said a Cyber police officer.

Darknet markets operate in the names Agora marketplace, Silk Road 3.0, AlphaBay, Agora marketplace, Dream Market and Crypto Market offers delivery of cocaine, ecstasy, heroin, opium, and charas.