OnionOnionDir Blog
27 articles organized by topic. Guides, investigations, fact-checking, and notable cases on the dark web.
📘 Guides & Tutorials
Access, security, practical uses.
Dark Web vs Deep Web: what exactly is the difference? (2026 Guide)
Everything you need to understand about the difference between the dark web and the deep web: definitions, relative size, concrete examples, how to access them, media confusion.
April 17, 2026VPN and Tor: should you combine them? Complete guide 2026
The complete technical debate on combining VPN and Tor: Tor over VPN vs VPN over Tor, pros, cons, Tor Project recommendations and real-world cases.
April 17, 2026Tails OS: the amnesic operating system - Complete guide 2026
Everything about Tails OS: the amnesic OS concept, installation on a USB drive, built-in tools, persistent storage, real-world use by journalists and activists.
April 17, 2026The real dangers of the dark web: myths, risks and how to protect yourself
Between fantasies and concrete threats: scams, malware, phishing, surveillance. Complete guide to the real risks of the dark web and effective protections.
April 10, 2026How to access the dark web safely in 2026
Complete guide to accessing the dark web securely with Tor Browser. Tips, precautions and best practices.
⚙️ Technical
Inner workings, hidden services, addressing.
Hosting a .onion site: complete technical guide 2026
Complete tutorial for hosting a Tor hidden service: torrc configuration, nginx, vanity address generation, operational security, specialist hosting providers.
April 17, 2026Configuring a Tor bridge (obfs4, Snowflake): step-by-step guide 2026
How to enable a bridge in Tor Browser when Tor is blocked: obfs4, Snowflake, meek-azure. Configuration and troubleshooting on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android.
April 17, 2026Generate a vanity .onion address with mkp224o: complete tutorial
How to generate a .onion address starting with a custom prefix using mkp224o: installation, computation time, torrc integration, best practices.
April 17, 2026OnionShare: complete guide to sharing files, chat and sites over Tor (2026)
Step-by-step OnionShare tutorial: file sharing, temporary site hosting, anonymous chat. Windows, macOS, Linux installation. Use cases for journalists and whistleblowers.
April 5, 2026What is a .onion link and how does it work?
Everything you need to know about .onion addresses: technical workings, security and differences from regular websites.
⚖️ Comparisons
Tor vs alternatives, engines, configurations.
Dark web search engines: complete comparison 2026
In-depth comparison of dark web search engines: Ahmia, Torch, Haystak, DuckDuckGo on Tor. Advantages, limitations, filtering policies and recommendations.
April 17, 2026Tor vs I2P vs Freenet: comparison of anonymity networks in 2026
In-depth comparison of the three main anonymisation networks: architecture, use cases, performance, community. Which one to choose and for what purpose?
⭐ Curations
Top picks and curated lists of legitimate services.
🔍 Myths Debunked
Fact-checking dark web legends.
Mariana's Web: myth or reality of the dark web's 'level 5'?
Complete fact-checking of the Mariana's Web legend: origin of the myth, why it is technically impossible, and what you really need to know.
April 17, 2026Dark web Red Rooms: myth, scam or reality?
Complete investigation into the Red Rooms myth: origin, technical impossibility, documented scam cases and what judicial investigations reveal.
📜 History & Cases
Arrests, marketplaces, key figures.
The history of Tor: from the US Navy to the worldwide anonymity network
Tor, from the first Naval Research Laboratory work in 1995 to its central role in the Snowden revelations and resistance to authoritarian regimes. A geopolitical history.
April 17, 2026Silk Road: complete timeline of the first major dark web marketplace
Detailed history of Silk Road from its creation in 2011 to its seizure in 2013: Ross Ulbricht, Dread Pirate Roberts, the FBI investigation and the January 2025 pardon.
April 17, 2026The arrest of Ross Ulbricht: the iconic scene at the San Francisco library
Minute-by-minute account of the arrest of the Silk Road founder on October 1, 2013: the FBI-staged distraction, the seized laptop left open, the perfect trap.
April 17, 2026Alexandre Cazes (AlphaBay): Lamborghinis, Thai villas and suspicious death in a cell
The 25-year-old Quebecer who became head of the largest dark web marketplace, his Bangkok lifestyle, the Operation Bayonet arrest and his death in a cell.
April 17, 2026The 6 murders ordered by Ross Ulbricht: when DEA agents were the hired killers
How Dread Pirate Roberts attempted to order 6 assassinations through Silk Road, and how two federal agents ran the scam while embezzling millions in Bitcoin.
April 17, 2026Empire Market: the $30 million exit scam that shook the dark web
How Empire Market operators vanished with $30M in Bitcoin escrow in August 2020, leaving 1.3 million users with no recourse. Timeline and investigation.
April 17, 2026Hector Monsegur aka "Sabu": the LulzSec leader who snitched on all his friends to the FBI
Portrait of Hector Monsegur, Puerto Rican hacker from the Lower East Side, LulzSec leader turned FBI informant who brought down Anonymous from the inside between 2011 and 2012.
April 17, 2026Black Hand: the story of the largest French-language drug marketplace on the dark web
Timeline of Black Hand, the French-language marketplace active from 2016 to 2018, from its Parisian rise to its dismantling by the gendarmerie and the J3 section of the Paris prosecutor's office.
🌍 By Country
Legal frameworks and local cases.
The dark web in France: legal framework, uses and notable cases
Overview of the dark web from a French perspective: legality of Tor, court cases, legitimate uses by journalists and activists, the role of PHAROS and the position of ANSSI.
April 17, 2026Tor in Iran in 2026: blocks, pluggable transports and activist uses
The state of Tor in Iran in 2026: blocked since 2009, usage spike during the Mahsa Amini protests, Snowflake as the main pluggable transport, Psiphon alternatives.
April 17, 2026Tor in Russia: Roskomnadzor block and digital resistance since 2021
Timeline of the official blocking of Tor in Russia by Roskomnadzor in December 2021, the 1.2 million daily Russian users despite the block, and the pluggable transports that still work.
April 17, 2026Dark web in Switzerland: liberal legal framework and notable cases
Overview of the dark web from a Swiss perspective: Tor perfectly legal, Article 143 CP on illegal access, MELANI/NCSC as federal reference body, notable local cases.