Hidden Treasure or Hidden Dangers?

By: Sydney MacDonald

The internet is one of the most revolutionary inventions of our time. It allows humans to connect with people all over the world and accomplish things that generations from the past couldn’t even dream of. Yet, for all that we know, there are still parts of the internet that most people aren’t aware of or don't understand. For parents, this is a scary thought. What are your kids doing on the internet exactly? Are they getting into trouble? Unless you are looking over their shoulder and checking their browsing history, you don’t truly know.

What if you were told that there were ways around these safety measures that could render you completely oblivious to what is happening in your home?  What if those things could potentially put your entire family in danger? Here are a few hidden dangers and potentially harmful websites that you may not be aware of.

1. Ctrl-Shift-N:
   Even though you can easily check someone’s computer history, there are ways around it. Ctrl-Shift-N, brings up another browser called “Incognito Mode”. When using this browser, people can use the internet without their computer history being recorded. This allows children and teens access to illicit content that they shouldn’t have been exposed to in the first place. Parents would never even be aware of their searches unless they were standing over their shoulder watching. While there currently isn’t a way to disable it, you should be aware of it and educate your children of all potential dangers involved in browsing without caution. 
   
   
2. Onion browser:
   Despite its name, it is not, in fact, a food website. The onion is a representation of the deep and darker layers of the web it gives access to as well as the peeling back of encryption layers. The onion browser is a downloadable anonymous browser that gives you access to deeper and darker parts of the web or better known as the “Dark Web”. This browser allows anonymity, but only to an extent. Hackers are so advanced now that they can easily discover someone’s IP address in a click of a button, considering the number of hacking communities within the Dark Web are quite high (INFORSEC, 2020)
   
   
3. Dark Web:
   Some of you may have heard of scary tales of the dark web, but most don’t truly know the extent of how deep the rabbit hole goes. A common analogy for the internet is to compare it to that of an iceberg. What you normally see is just the tip of the iceberg. All of this entails the normal parts of the internet that are known to everyone. However, the dark web is everything that is hidden beyond the surface. The dark web contains some of the darkest parts of humanity, including human trafficking, child pornography, paid mutilation, assassinations, hacking, drug trafficking, and kidnappings. The Dark Web uses a specific currency by the name of Bitcoin. Bitcoins’ original usage was not intended for the Dark Web but has since become its main currency.
   Police have been trying to shut down as many websites within the dark web as possible, however, with every one website taken down, several are usually put in its place. It is unclear if it will ever truly be gone for good, or if it will continue to morph as technology advances. All I can recommend is that you ensure that you and any of your loved ones stay clear of this dangerous platform. 
   
   
4. Omegle:
   Omegle was created in 2009. It is a free online chat that allows people to socialize with others without registration. The chat randomly pairs users in one-on-one chat sessions, either through messenger or webcam. Due to the randomness of the pairings, the people matched with you can sometimes be less than savoury, this includes those who enter the chat nude and in search of someone to sext with, or simply to shock other users. Children and teens have the potential to be exposed to inappropriate content as well as child predators who now have their face on their screen.
   
   
5. Tumblr:
   Some may have heard of Tumblr, but not everyone knows exactly the dangers it poses. Tumblr is a blog-based site that allows people to share and make posts about specific fan-related interests. The site allows you to connect to other blogs with similar interests, and there you can share their content on your own blog. Unfortunately, despite the recent adult content ban, there has been an influx of porn bots that invade Tumblr’s system that follow and send messages to normal blogs. These bots contain pornographic images. On top of this, the messenger on Tumblr allows anyone to message you, and there are no privacy settings like Facebook and Instagram have. Anyone can access your blog, and if you aren’t careful about what you share, strangers will be able to collect your personal information. 
   Tumblr has a very open community of people and is very LGBTQ friendly. It is used as an outlet for teens and young adults to be able to connect with likeminded people, which makes it that much easier to be targeted. Tumblr is often seen as a haven for minorities and other vulnerable groups, which makes Tumblr the perfect spot for predators. It is also a place where users can be subject to dark and triggering content such as “pro-anorexia” or “suicidal thoughts” posts.  However, the good thing about Tumblr is that you can block people, which not only prevents them from accessing your blog, but you won’t have to be subjected to their content as well. There is also a filter option that allows certain categories of content to be filtered by your Tumblr feed. If your child is using Tumblr, it is recommended that you filter out certain categories immediately.
   
   

These are only some features of the web that can cause potential problems for you and your children. Some of which I listed can still be used, and be used safely, if you know how to do so. However, others should be avoided at all costs, no matter how intriguing it may seem to you to explore further. Educating yourself and your children on what to stay away from can keep your family safe. A helpful tool for parents and children is protectkidsonline.ca. Protect Kids Online is a website that is age-specific and uses other outside resources such as Cybertip.ca (another helpful tool to learn about online safety) to gather information. They can help you and your child remain up-to-date on new online features that could pose a threat and inform you of any preventative measures you can take to be safe.

Helpful Safety Tools:
Cyber Safe: https://www.cybersafebc.ca/
Cyber Tip: https://www.cybertip.ca/app/en/
Protect Children: https://protectchildren.ca/en/resources-research/online-safety/
Protect Kids Online: https://protectkidsonline.ca/app/en/

References:
Infosec. (2020, January 20). Hacking communities in the Deep Web [Updated 2019]. 
Retrieved May 27, 2020, from https://resources.infosecinstitute.com/hacking-communities-in-the-deep-web/