RIP Webby

The FBI appears to have taken down DeepDotWeb, a site that publicized links to online black markets on the dark web.

DeepDotWeb was a popular resource to find underground websites, which can often only be visited via the Tor browser. The site itself also indexed the top black market platforms. But on Tuesday, DeepDotWeb's main page was replaced with a notice claiming the FBI had seized the site.

So far, the FBI hasn't commented on the takedown. But police in Israel told local media they arrested two individuals as part of a global operation to nab the administrators of DeepDotWeb.

It's not illegal to post a link to a black market site, even though they deal in goods such as drugs, stolen data, and child pornography. However, DeepDotWeb may have done more than simply function as a resource to help visitors navigate the dark web. Allegedly, the owners received bitcoin from black market sites in exchange for publishing links to them. According to Israeli police, the owners of DeepDotWeb had been raking in millions through their "affiliate marketing" business.

Police have also arrested several other suspects based in France, Germany, Holland and Brazil for their role in running the site, according to The Jerusalem Post.

DeepDotWeb did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The shutdown occurs days after authorities seized the Wall Street Market, one of the biggest online black markets on the dark web, and arrested three people suspected of running it. The site had 1.15 million customer accounts and featured thousands of sellers offering illegal goods.

The FBI have arrested several people suspected of involvement in running Deep Dot Web, a website for facilitating access to dark web sites and marketplaces.

Two suspects were arrested in Tel Aviv and Ashdod, according to Israel’s Tel Aviv Police, which confirmed the arrests in a statement earlier in the day. Local media first reported the arrests.

Arrests were also made in France, Germany and the Netherlands. A source familiar with the operation said a site administrator was arrested in Brazil.

Deep Dot Web is said to have made millions of dollars in commission by offering referral links to dark web marketplaces, accessible only at .onion domains over the Tor Network. Tor bounces internet traffic through a series of random relay servers dotted across the world, making it near-impossible to trace the user.

Its .onion site displayed a seized notice by the FBI, citing U.S. money laundering laws. Its clear web domain no longer loads.

Tuesday’s arrests follow an operation by U.S. and German authorities earlier in the week that took down the Wall Street Market, one of the largest remaining dark web marketplaces. Thousands of sellers sold drugs, weapons and stolen credentials used to break into online accounts.

Efforts to reach Deep Dot Web over encrypted chat were unsuccessful.

A spokesperson for the Justice Department did not have comment, while the FBI declined to comment. A spokesperson for the Israeli consulate in New York did not respond to a request for comment.