Casting Light on the Dark Web: A Guide for Safe Exploration(LITA Guides)

Covers topics from what the dark web is, to how it works, to how you can use it, to some of the myths surrounding it. Casting Light on the Dark Web: A Guide for Safe Exploration is an easy-to-read and comprehensive guide to understanding how the Dark Web works and why you should be using it! Readers will be led on a tour of this elusive technology from how to download the platform for personal or public use, to how it can best be utilized for finding information. This guide busts myths and informs readers, while remaining jargon-free and entertaining. Useful for people of all levels of internet knowledge and experience.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1 - What is the Dark Web? What is the dark web? Ways to access the dark web What is the value of the dark web? What can it do for me? Chapter 2 - History of the Internet and Dark Web Beginner’s overview of Information Theory Basic history of the Internet Understanding privacy needs on the early Internet From the deep web to the dark web Freenet I2P Tor Chapter 3 - How It Works: The Dark Details Introduction Understanding the Internet The Dark Web Chapter 4 - Distinguishing Fact from Fiction: Is the Dark Web Really Dark? How do we define the dark web? Myth 1: The Dark Web is the place where terrorists go to buy weapons and plan attacks Myth 2: The Dark Web is mostly a marketplace for illicit drugs Myth 3: The Dark Web has no value to an “upstanding” citizen Myth 4: It is illegal to use the Dark Web Myth 5: The dark web will steal my personal information Myth 6: I need to buy some special hardware or software in order to use the dark web Some prominent reports on the dark web Chapter 5 - How to Access the Dark Web How to Install Tor How to Install Freenet How to Install I2P Similarities and Differences Between Platforms How to Choose Which Platform to Use Is Installing the Dark Web Legal? Should I Let My Child Download the Dark Web? Chapter 6 - How to Browse Using the Dark Web How to Browse Tor How to Browse Freenet How to Browse I2P Brief History of Dark Websites Major Dark Websites Chapter 7 - Addressing Legal and Ethical Concerns History of legal and ethical issues on the dark web Examples of the illegal content on the dark web How to avoid illegal content on the dark web Limiting others’ access of illegal content on the dark web Can the dark web be “taken down” and why you should care Chapter 8 - Research and Advocacy on the Dark Web Dark web research Infrastructure Advocacy Financial opportunity Chapter 9 - Your Future With the Dark Web A Tale of Internet Past The big pitch Final Words The End

About the Author :
Matthew Beckstrom was born and raised in Montana. He received an Associate’s degree in Computer Science from the University of Montana, and then later, a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from Montana State University. After working in various technology jobs, he finally settled into the job of systems manager at the Lewis & Clark Library in Helena in 1999. In 2012, he received his Master’s degree in Information Science from the University of North Texas after receiving a grant from the Montana State Library to attend library school. Brady Lund is a PhD student at Emporia State University’s School of Library and Information Management. He holds a Master's of Library Science from Emporia State and a Bachelor’s in Communication Science and Disorders from Wichita State University. He has previously published articles in several major Library and Information Science Journals on topics ranging from information security to knowledge organization and initially presented on the topic of the dark web at the 2017 American Library Association Annual Conference.

Review :
Recommended: Casting Light on the Dark Web is both a concise, readable guide to the dark web and an attempt by Beckstrom and Lund to dispel the negative image of the dark web often presented in the media. The authors meet both of these goals, offering a solid primer on the history of the internet and dark web, basic technical information for accessing and browsing the dark web, and legal and ethical issues. . . [Beckstrom and Lund] provide timely, basic information that will be helpful for nonspecialists seeking to learn more about this often misunderstood sector of the internet. For those who think of the dark web as inherently malign, this concise and informative primer will set them straight. Armed with masters degrees in, respectively, information and library science, Beckstrom and Lund set out to provide a “no-bull guide to the dark web,” starting by clarifying that calling this loose-knit group of specially-accessed websites dark doesn’t connote nefarious purposes, but user anonymity—a potentially desirable quality for political dissidents, whistle-blowers, and people simply concerned with online privacy. The authors explore the three major browsers available—Freenet, I2P, and Tor (the most popular)—and provide guidance for accessing and downloading all three, security tips, and helpful screen grabs. They also debunk six common myths about their subject—such as “the dark web is mostly a marketplace for illicit drugs” or “it is illegal to use the dark web—and cover how to avoid illegal activity on the dark web and what to do if one does encounter it (in general, call or email the FBI). Readers will immediately note how the book is structured—each chapter is self-contained, with its own table of contents and bibliography—a somewhat unusual but effective organizing principle aimed at usability. Beckstrom and Lund’s smart and well-informed guide makes a clear case for the dark web’s benefits and dispels associated myths. This is a concise and clear introduction to an important aspect of the Internet that is often glossed over or demonized. The authors describe both the dark web's important advantages for truly private communication, and its undeniable downsides. It is a valuable tool, especially for libraries considering whether to provide their users with access to dark web applications. At once a history, a primer, a recipe book and an ethical advisory, Casting Light on the Dark Web: A Guide for Safe Exploration dispels the myths about the anonymous web and provides reliable guidelines for using the various dark web platforms to enhance user privacy and security in libraries and beyond.