Crypto Browser Brave Announces Direct Integration with Dark Web Gateway Tor
Crypto-friendly browser service Brave (BAT) has made it easier to access the secure dark web with direct integration with Tor. The privacy-focused browser platform continues to roll out features designed to prevent spyware and improve online security for its users.
Brave Websites Now Accessible from the Dark Web
Brave announced the new Tor integration via a blog post published on its website on Monday (October 5, 2020). According to the announcement, Brave now has its own Tor Onion service.
https://t.co/yo4cVqraYq now has a @torproject .onion service, providing more users with secure access to Brave. See how our devops engineer @bkero created this setup, which you should be able to use to create your own onion service #MoreOnionsPorFavor: https://t.co/DSrmyNh5qO
— Brave Software (@brave) October 5, 2020
Thus, the Brave website is now available on Tor meaning that the browser’s web pages are now directly viewable from the secure dark web. Instead of using Brave.com addresses, dark web users can now browse the secure web using Brave.onion links.
The direct integration with Tor follows the browser feature launched back in 2018. Brave has also been running Tor relays as part of efforts to deliver secure web browsing functionality for its users.
While the dark web often carries negative connotations associated with illicit transactions like drug trafficking and child pornography, the secure web offers some online protection for investigative journalists, human rights activists, whistleblowers, independent researchers, and other dissidents. Services like Tor also allow users to enjoy online freedoms in jurisdictions with authoritarian internet censorship laws.
Brave making its websites accessible from the dark web is only the latest in a growing string of features designed to improve user privacy and security. As previously reported by BTCManager, the browser platform recently implemented an anti-phishing crypto scam detector solution. Back in July, Brave partnered with internet security company Guardian to launch a VPN and firewall service for iOS.
Recently, Brave has also begun to improve the crypto-focused aspects of its service delivery. In July, Brave integrated Gemini trading widget for easy in-browser trading functionality. Earlier in the same month, the privacy-centric browsing platform also partnered with Japanese crypto exchange bitFlyer to develop a cryptocurrency wallet.
Crypto and the Dark Web
With Brave making a splash on Tor, the relationship between crypto and the dark web opens another chapter. Indeed, associations between cryptocurrency and darknet channels trace back to the beginning of the virtual currency journey.
As early as 2010, some “OG-Bitcoiners” were already considering the possibility of creating a darknet marketplace for narcotics. This idea would eventually morph into the notorious Silk Road darknet website that triggered a massive law enforcement action and arguably brought BTC to the public domain.
