For those new to the dark web, it is almost impossible to find a website on the Tor browser or how it works and that’s where dark web search engines help.
For some, the dark web remains an important source of information owing to the fact that some people may feel much more comfortable posting there due to the anonymity it offers. However, to access the layers of data hidden within it, a search engine is a necessity.
Now, we did publish a post earlier in February this year for the best dark web search engines. But, as it is well known, most dark web sites do not last long and may go offline forever. Therefore, we’re back with a new article detailing the 5 best dark web search engines that are currently active.
1. Ahmia.fi
Also a part of our earlier list, Ahmia.fi remains reliable and also has a policy against any “abuse material”, something different from many other dark web search engines that also index websites featuring child sexual abuse content.
Ahmia is also available on the surface web and supports searches on the i2p network as well. You can visit Ahmia’s .Onion domain here.
2. Dark Search
Dark Search is a new addition to the list of dark web search engines. The platform claims it is the “first real dark web search engine.” Dark Search lets users search through its Tor domain as well as its clear web domain.
Its .onion domain can be accessed here while the clearnet domain is available here.
3. The Hidden Wiki
Okay so this isn’t a literal search engine but it is very useful. You see, whenever you make a search query on a dark web search engine, you’re bound to see 20 spammy links and then maybe 1 legitimate one. This can make it a time-consuming process to search.
However, this Wiki helps solve this by providing a directory list of websites on the dark web allowing you to easily access them. A surface web version is also available.
Other websites that offer similar content include TorLinks and OnionLinks. You can visit The Hidden Wiki by following its .Onion link here.
4. Haystak
Claiming to have indexed over 1.5 billion pages which includes more than 260,000 websites, Haystak indeed would stand out to be a resourceful engine amongst the list.
It also has a paid version which offers a number of additional features such as searching using regular expressions, browsing now-defunct onion sites, and accessing their API.
You can’t bet them to have your best interests at hand though considering one of these features allows you to access a database of stolen credit card information and email addresses as well.
You can visit Haystak by following its .Onion link here.
5. Torch
This one too is one of those search engines that have lasted for long enough(since 1996) but the search results are not impressive. In the query above, I wanted to know Facebook’s onion URL, a very simple piece of information. Yet, it reported everything but that showing how far these search engines have to go in order to improve.
On the other hand, it is fast and can come in handy regardless. Nevertheless, you can visit Torch by following its .Onion link here.
6. DuckDuckGo
A long-time foe of Google, you’re bound to find this on almost every dark web search engine list. Yet, it reports surface web search results in more than those from the dark web and so the only good point we’re left with is the anonymity it offers. In fact, I couldn’t find 1 dark web search result through a couple of random queries.
You can visit DuckDuckGo by visiting its .Onion link here.
To conclude, we hope this list helps you use the TOR browser more efficiently. Just be careful to avoid browsing any illegal websites as it can get you in trouble along with the moral choice of course.
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