The history of the Internet as you may not know it — part 2 — the Deep Web

Get ready for a series of articles where you’ll learn hidden facts about the world of the Web and ways to gain new knowledge!

Part 2

If last time we talked about the Dark Web, which is part of the complete iceberg of the Internet, now it’s time to talk about the Deep Web. In case you haven’t read the Dark Web article, just click or tap HERE.

Now it’s time to elaborate and see what the Deep Web has to offer! Maybe you are wondering “what value does this information have for me?”.

You can learn simple ways to understand simply and clearly how the internet works and how you can keep your personal data as well as your financial resources safe.

WHAT IS THE DEEP WEB?

The Invisible Web, or Deep Web as it is also called, represents about 90% of all websites and are parts of the WWW (World Wide Web) where the content is not indexed by standard web search engines such as Google, Yahoo, Bing etc.

Computer scientist Michael K. Bergman in 2001 came up with this indexing and is credited for coining the phrase “deep web”.

“Today searching the internet can be compared to throwing a net on the surface of the ocean. Although much of it can be caught in the net, there is still a lot of information that is deep and cannot be caught. The reason is simple: most of the information on the Web is buried on dynamically generated sites, and standard search engines never find it.” — Michael K. Bergman

A study done by the NEC Research Institute, estimated that search engines have the highest number of indexed web pages (example: Google), indexing around 16%. Basically, people searching the internet access around 0.05% of the pages currently available, because the rest of the information is in the Deep Web.

WHAT CAN YOU FIND ON THE DEEP WEB?

The invisible web is so big that it is impossible to discover exactly how many pages or websites are active at the moment.

The Deep Web mostly contains sites and services such as Netflix, YouTube, WebMail, online banking, restricted access social networking pages and profiles, magazines, online newspapers and websites that can only be accessed through an online form.

Imagine if your personal data, username and password didn’t exist on the Deep Web and they could be found with a simple Google search, at leisure.

You certainly wouldn’t like that, would you?

Think of Google as a boat and you’re in it. You’re walking around the iceberg and all you can see is just what’s on the surface of it.

Everything else, from private databases and more illegal content, is out of reach. This deep web also includes the portion we know as the Dark Web.

Deep Web Technologies, DeepPeep, Intute, Scirus and Ahmia.fi are some search engines that have accessed the Deep Web.

Deep Web: Pros and Cons

PRO:

• The Deep Web gives users access to much more information than would otherwise be available on the internet and another important thing is that you have privacy.
• Encryption on the deep web allows service sites to keep their content away from internet users who don’t pay.
• With encryption both businesses and individuals can conduct financial transactions securely over the internet.

CONS:

• In the 1990’s, the Internet was meant to give everyone an equal chance to access everything.
• Fee-for-service websites offer access to premium productivity tools only to those who can afford it. In many cases, the tools cost tens, hundreds and even thousands of dollars, creating barriers for many users.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE DEEP WEB AND THE DARK WEB?

The illegal activities that took place in 2009 on the freenet and Darknet have led people to confuse the Deep Web with the Dark Web.

• The Deep Web contains the Dark Web which is only a small part of the internet, around 3%-5% of the whole internet.
• The Deep Web refers to websites that cannot be accessed through a traditional search engine, while the Dark Web is a portion of the Deep Web that has been intentionally hidden and is inaccessible through standard browsers and methods, being encrypted.
• The Deep Web contains over 90% of the information, whereas the Dark Web has only a few thousand websites.

Basically, the Deep Web is meant to provide you with “intimidation” online, while the Dark Web is often used to conduct illegal activities or online transactions.

IS IT ILLEGAL TO ACCESS THE DEEP WEB?

It is not illegal to access websites that are not indexed, but if you use information or steal it from websites on the Deep Web, it is definitely a crime.

Tell us what you liked and what you wish you knew!