We are all familiar with the world wide web and the plethora of information it provides. But lurking in the shadows is the dark web, or darknet if you will. Cybersecurity experts can utilize darknet DATA to enhance fraud protection. If you’re interested in knowing how, keep reading.
Dark Web Basics
Before getting into darknet data and its ability to assist with fraud protection, it’s important to discuss a few dark web basics. For starters, the dark web exists online. It shares the same cyberspace as the public internet. However, it is kept hidden from the general public through encryption.
You won’t find your way to the darknet by running an organic search on Google. You need to know where to find it. Then you need to have the right software to get on to it. For instance, anyone with a web browser can access any traditional website if he knows the URL. But to find a darknet site, you need special software and a bit of knowledge the average internet user doesn’t possess.
The Dark Web and Fraud Protection
What makes the dark web problematic for so many organizations is that it provides a safe haven for threat actors looking to perpetrate fraud. Enter fraud protection. By constantly scanning, aggregating, and analyzing darknet data, organizations like DarkOwl can provide the intelligence their clients need to institute proper fraud protection strategies.
Here are four strategies that rely on darknet data:
1. Dark Web Monitoring
Threat actors are continuously monitoring victim activity. In order to prevent becoming the next victim, organizations need to do the exact same thing. Whether independently or through organizations like DarkOwl, they need to constantly monitor the dark web. Organizations should continuously monitor forums, marketplaces, and other channels to identify:
- Leaked credentials and personal information
- Sensitive company and customer data
- Early warnings of potential attacks
- Changes in cyber-criminal tactics
Monitoring produces data. And data equals power when it comes to fraud protection. It’s just that simple.
2. Threat Intelligence
Darknet data is integral to leveraging threat intelligence for cybersecurity purposes. With thread intelligence, organizations aggregate and analyze data, respond with fraud protection strategies, and share relevant information with industry partners and authorities.
3. Identity Protection
A big part of fraud protection is verifying identities proactively. Darknet data can be utilized here, in the sense that organizations can find leaked and sensitive information that could come back to bite them.
Darknet data offer sufficient reason to implement multifactor authentication, use password manager software, and verify identities through multiple sources.
4. Automated Fraud Detection
Automation is changing the way organizations protect themselves against online fraud. An automated tool’s capabilities are directly related to the data it operates on. Therefore, feeding a tool darknet data enhances its ability to do what it does.
Automated fraud protection systems are capable of:
- Creating and maintaining lists of known fraudulent identities
- Implementing machine learning to detect suspicious patterns
- Deploying sophisticated algorithms to detect anomalies that could represent fraud.
One could argue that automation is one of the best things to be introduced to fraud protection in decades. One thing is for sure, automation driven by AI and deep learning is extremely effective.
Additional fraud protection strategies are made possible with the use of darknet data. Ironically, those who would use the darknet to facilitate fraud don’t want legitimate organizations to discover what they are doing. They work to secure their own data while security companies utilize the latest technologies and strategies to find it. It is a cat-and-mouse game that will continue as long as there is an internet.