Hype or Help? How to Protect Your Data with Dark Web Monitoring

There’s the internet that we’re used to. Whether it is buying bulk paper towels, looking up the latest sports scores, or researching a much-needed vacation, there are websites that we can venture to when we want to with just a few clicks.

Then, there’s the dark web. 

Over time, this darker side of the internet has developed its own bad reputation—and for good reason. The dark web has become synonymous with crime and anonymity and is now a place that both individuals and businesses should be aware of and proactively protect themselves from.

Just what is the dark web, and how can you keep your important data safe from those looking to take advantage of it? 

This is where dark web monitoring can help.

What is the dark web, and why should I care?

The dark web is “a hidden network of websites” that requires a special web browser and often a VPN to access. 

Unlike the rest of the internet that we all know and regularly use on our computers and mobile devices, the dark web is not “crawled,” or indexed, by search engines to identify what type of information is hosted. The dark web also often allows users to mask their true IP addresses. 

This allows those that traverse and use the dark web to stay anonymous and use it for a wide range of purposes, both innocuous and malicious. With the sale and trade of stolen data (such as corporate and trade secrets), vulnerabilities and exploits, and even hackers for hire, the dark web has a deservedly dark cloud over it. 

How can dark web monitoring help keep my data safe?

Fortunately, you don’t have to protect yourself from this nefarious side of the net on your own. Businesses and individuals can take advantage of dark web monitoring, which is a structured and robust search for and monitoring of the dark web for personally identifiable information and corporate information that could have been stolen or misused.

In a way, dark web monitoring tools can be thought of as a specialized type of search engine that proactively identifies leaked or stolen information, including compromised passwords, intellectual property, and other sensitive data.

The results from dark web monitoring can then be used to alert organizations and individuals about the potential for malicious activity involving them, such as identity theft and fraud.

Dark web monitoring can also be used to alert organizations about potential vulnerabilities or attacks relating to their enterprise to help profile and mitigate threats quicker.

Think|Stack is ready to help keep your data safe.

Whether it is getting started with dark web monitoring from one of our trusted partners or protecting your organization with comprehensive and powerful threat intelligence, Think|Stack has the experience you need to protect your brand from the worst cybercriminals have to offer.

You can even integrate your dark web monitoring with Think|Stack’s enterprise cybersecurity managed services, meaning you can not only have advanced warning of nefarious activity but also integration with our industry-leading data loss prevention and security information and event management tools.

All of this functionality also comes with access to our tested and proven 24/7/365 incident response and investigation support team.

Ready to take the next step?

As the last year’s worth of high-profile ransomware attacks, data breaches, and cyberattacks have proven, cybercriminals show no signs of slowing down in the years to come.

That’s why now is the time to do everything you can to safeguard your brand, your data, and your identity and take the proactive steps you need to be notified as soon as your information appears on the dark web.

Want to learn more about how dark web monitoring can help you and your brand? The team at Think|Stack would welcome the chance to provide you with your own personalized consultation and provide you with our resource, “Cybersecurity Framework: Compliance and Protection 101.”