The Altenen dark web forum, which is famous for credit card fraud, also produces fake IDs and passports. After the arrest of the founder, the dark web forum continues to be actively used, managed by another user with the address Altenen.nz. The forum contains a significant amount of exploits, zero-day exploits, and malware.
Beyond just tracking data leaks, the intelligence gathered guides defensive strategies against ransomware, fraud, and other cyberattacks common in these underground communities. Regular scanning of active forums reveals attacker tactics, tools, and infrastructure changes, helping cybersecurity teams adapt their defenses accordingly. Some advanced tools automate both data extraction and analysis, improving situational awareness without manual intervention.
Hidden Cyber Risks Of Generative Artificial Intelligence
Monitoring dark web forums critically underpins the establishment of a proactive defense against cybersecurity threats. This essential vigilance now spans traditional dark web forums, deep web repositories, Telegram channels, underground marketplaces, and ransomware group platforms. SOCRadar Threat Hunting empowers organizations to navigate and monitor these complex environments safely, avoiding direct exposure. XSS is also used as a trading platform for illicit digital goods related to hacking and financial fraud. Many of its registered users engage in direct transactions of various items such as leaked databases, custom malware, hacking tools, vulnerabilities, and zero days that were discovered by hackers.
There’s also significant discussion about malware, software vulnerabilities, and leaked databases, whether for sale or freely shared. Tor offers secure and encrypted access to the dark web forums, ensuring that the user’s IP address is hidden and difficult to trace. Therefore, cybercriminals use these forums because they offer assured anonymity and security.
- I strongly advise doing your own research to make sure you’re not breaking any local laws by visiting the dark web.
- Engaging with these forums also requires sophisticated operational security measures to protect the identities and activities of cybersecurity professionals from being exposed or compromised.
- When credentials and sensitive information are exposed on these platforms, the risk of cyberattacks rises by more than 2.5 times, leaving organizations highly vulnerable.
- It serves as a vital platform where cybercriminals trade hacked databases, credentials, and discuss zero-day exploits and vulnerability research.
- Basically, if a Tor IP leak occurs before you connect to the VPN, your real IP address will be exposed.
The Start Of BreachForums
What sets Exploit.in apart is its vendor verification system and dispute resolution process, which create a more reliable trading environment, a rare feature among illicit forums. Users range from hackers searching for new exploits to buyers looking for ready-to-use malware and stolen credentials. Due to its extensive archives and active listings, Exploit.in is frequently referenced in cybersecurity reports as a key source of emerging threats and malware samples. This combination of accessibility, trust mechanisms, and a broad product offering keeps Exploit.in relevant and highly active in the cybercriminal underground in 2025.
ZeroFox Intelligence
Leveraging advanced search algorithms and customizable news feeds, SOCRadar delivers targeted insights into specific threats. Our exploration takes us through the digital alleyways of the internet’s underbelly, where forums like BreachForums and XSS offer a glimpse into the sophisticated world of cyber threats and data breaches. These platforms shrouded in anonymity, are where the boundaries of legality blur, challenging cybersecurity efforts worldwide. As we unveil these forums, we aim to provide insights into their operations, memberships, and the overarching impact they have on both the cyber and physical realms. Monitoring dark web forums for such content is crucial, as these videos can provide cybersecurity teams with valuable insights into emerging threats and tools used by hackers.
Originally Known As DaMaGeLaB, XSS Is One Of The Longest-running Dark Web Forums
These cybercriminal communities are behind some of the biggest cyberattacks in recent years, fueling data breaches, phishing scams, ransomware, and fraud. People post, reply, and build status, but instead of talking about hobbies or tech, they trade hacking tips, leaked data, and ransomware services. Some serve as open spaces for free speech, especially in countries with strict censorship. Most forums are tied to cybercrime, and many are active marketplaces for leaked business data.
How Active Are Dark Web Forum Users?
Founded in 2013, this deep web forum has grown to boast over 3 million members and more than 17 million posts, making it one of the most bustling hubs for hacking and cybersecurity discussions. The forum appeals to a wide range of users, from beginners seeking tutorials and tools to seasoned hackers sharing advanced techniques. It uniquely blends conversations about hacking methods with broader cybersecurity topics, creating a diverse environment where knowledge flows freely across skill levels. Cracked.to also operates a marketplace where users buy and sell fraud-related goods and services, including carding, account cracking, and social engineering tools.
Search Code, Repositories, Users, Issues, Pull Requests
- There’s even an option to set a timer on your most sensitive messages so they disappear after a set time period.
- Altenen continues to thrive in 2025, frequently appearing in hacker forum lists and intelligence reports highlighting stolen data forums.
- If a credible threat is detected, businesses should have a predefined escalation strategy to follow accordingly.
- RAMP enforces extremely strict access policies, with one key requirement being a solid reputation on other well-known forums like XSS or Exploit.in.
- Since the surface web has more content compared to the Dark Web and hidden surface web forumswe have found, only the first page of each thread has been scraped instead of all pages.
- To access the Hydra Market, it remained strong, secure, and confidential by continuing its activities with cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin over the Tor network.
The forum with a similar theme and name was opened to users, and this brought to mind the question of whether it was a game of the FBI. Cybercriminals operate across borders, exploiting differences in legal jurisdictions to avoid prosecution. Founded in 2018 by HugBunter, Dread is likened to the “Reddit of the dark web” due to its interface. While it mainly focuses on drug sales, hacking-related topics are increasing, making it a significant forum despite its lower ranking. And some forums grew faster than others–compound monthly growth rates were 1 percent for the slowest-growing forum and 9 percent for the fastest. Understanding a forum’s lifecycle and internal dynamics guides an analyst’s attention to the highest-value sources and actors.
In 2016, the forum suffered a data breach, exposing sensitive user information and heightening its notoriety. Over the years, Exploit.in has been referenced in various threat intelligence reports for hosting breach-related chatter linked to major data compromise events. From financial services to cloud storage platforms, numerous leaked databases first surfaced here before spreading to more public leak sites. Due to its selective nature and insider-level discussions, the forum is rarely listed on general hacker forum lists, yet it remains a key player in the underground cybercrime ecosystem. For those tracking the movement of stolen data forums and elite exploit trading, Exploit.in stands out as one of the most influential and best-kept secrets on the dark web. Dark web forums are online discussion platforms that operate within the dark web, a part of the internet that requires special software like Tor to access and is not indexed by traditional search engines.
This is often the case with brand new forums, especially in the English-language scene with its ferocious competition and frequent migration of users from one platform to another. As early as March 2020, a user stated DWF had already become “dead” and “boring” and said users should share more knowledge and skills to make the forum lively again. New users on DWF must have their accounts verified by the forum team before they can fully access the forum or view the actual contents of threads. The platform’s administrator “Professor” was the first forum staff member to post on the site, sharing a “welcome” post on 30 Jan 2020.
The Cracked Dark Web forum hosts posts on exploit development, zero-day exploits, user logins, and cybersecurity. Cracked is not an illegal platform and is used by cybersecurity experts and penetration testers. Altenen, an English-speaking forum focused on credit card fraud, has been active since 2008. Altenen requires new members to share its domains on social media platforms, ensuring ongoing activity. It is intentionally obscured from search engines and requires special software like Tor (The Onion Router) to access it. Sites on the dark web typically use .onion domain names, which add a layer of anonymity for both users and administrators.
“A judicial investigation was opened on November 9, 2021 on charges of complicity in attacks on an automated data processing system, organised extortion, and criminal conspiracy,” Beccuau said. The dark web has grown in popularity over the years as people become increasingly technologically savvy. Using a darknet browser like Tor or I2P allows users to stay anonymous whilst browsing online. Sophisticated actors, however, usually frequent a select few well-regarded Tor sites as I mentioned above in the top 4 listing. A writer, tech enthusiast, dog walker, and amateur pastry chef, Joanna grew up in a family of engineers and mathematicians, so a techy mind is in her genes.
