Profiling the vendors of COVID‐19 related product on the Darknet: An observational study

Catalani, Valeria, Townshend, Honor D., Prilutskaya, Mariya, Roman-Urrestarazu, Andres, van Kessel, Robin, Chilcott, Robert P., Banayoti, Hani, McSweeney, Tim and Corazza, Ornella (2023) Profiling the vendors of COVID‐19 related product on the Darknet: An observational study. Emerging Trends in Drugs, Addictions, and Health, 3. ISSN 2667-1182

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Abstract

Background In a time of unprecedented global change, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a surge in demand of COVID-19 vaccines and related certifications. Mainly due to supply shortages, counterfeit vaccines, fake documentation, and alleged cures to illegal portfolios, have been offered on darkweb marketplaces (DWMs) with important public health consequences. We aimed to profile key DWMs and vendors by presenting some in-depth case studies. Methods A non-systematic search for COVID-19 products was performed across 118 DWMs. Levels of activity, credibility, content, COVID-19 product listings, privacy protocols were among the features retrieved. Open web fora and other open web sources were also considered for further analysis of both functional and non functional DWMs. Collected data refers to the period between January 2020 and October 2021. Results A total of 42 relevant listings sold by 24 vendors across eight DWMs were identified. Four of these markets were active and well-established at the time of the study with good levels of credibility. COVID-19 products were listed alongside other marketplace content. Vendors had a trusted profile, communicated in English language and accepted payments in cryptocurrencies (Monero or Bitcoin). Their geographical location included the USA, Asia and Europe. While COVID-19 related goods were mostly available for regional supply, other listings were also shipped worldwide. Interpretation Findings emerging from this study rise important questions about the health safety of certain DWMs activities and encourage the development of targeted interventions to overcome such new and rapidly expanding public health threats.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/emerging-tre...
Additional Information:	© 2023 The Author(s)
Divisions:	LSE Health
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HV Social pathology. Social and public welfare. Criminology R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine
Date Deposited:	28 May 2024 09:57
Last Modified:	14 Sep 2024 10:06
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/123663

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