Online Identities Can be Bought for £820 on the Dark Web

It has become apparent that an individual’s extensive online identity, including dating profiles, shopping accounts, bank details and passport information, can be bought for £820 on the dark web.

Internet sites which were hidden to everyday users trade stolen personal data.

Three of the most popular dark web markets, Dream, Point and Wall Street Market, all have a large amount of sensitive data on sale for as little as £2.50 an item.

Security researcher at network company Top10VPN found that bank details were being sold for about £168, Paypal logins were going for £280 and passports valued at just under £40.

Simon Migliano, Head of Research at Top10VPN, warned that: “social media could often provide a back door to hackers as people reused the same password on multiple accounts.”

He added that the low price point of the information has revealed how available the personal details are to criminals online.

Dating profiles are at a high risk, with Match.com logins being sold for an average of £2.24. Stolen details like these can be used for catfishing.

Mr Migliano said: “There’s a real concern that with such valuable information changing hands so cheaply there’s nothing to prevent people from buying up much as they can in the hope of striking it lucky and draining victims’ bank accounts and credit lines.”

He added: “What’s interesting is that everything seems to have a price on the dark web. This is because it’s not just hacked Paypal accounts and credit cards that represent opportunities for fraud. Many other online accounts contain enough personal info to enable identity theft. It’s also increasingly normal to store payment details in online shopping accounts.”

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