Codepunk 050: The Silk Road

The Tor network and browser were born out of the need to promote privacy and security in a society becoming increasingly plagued by surveillance. The term "dark web" arose out the usage of so-called darknets such as Tor that held specific content on there networks only accessible via the Tor software. This Dark Web, however, started to become synonymous with crime and unsavory behavior.

It was with the Silk Road that the public really began to take notice of Tor and the Dark Web. In this episode, we take a look at the creation of the Silk Road, how it effectively used fringe technology, and what its legacy (and the prosecution of Ross Ulbricht) means for the Internet.

(Photo by fdecomite)

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