“We work only for Russians”

The administrator of the online drug store RAMP gave an interview to Wired magazine

Wired magazine published an interview with the administrator of the Russian online drug store RAMP, known under the nickname Darkside. A user involved in the development of the site told the publication about his income, features of the business model and attitude to politics. TJ selected the most important parts of the interview.

The online store RAMP (Russian Anonymous Marketplace) has existed for several years and is located in the domain zone of the so-called deep or dark Internet .onion. Only users of the Tor browser have access to the resource, which hides the visitor’s real IP address.

RAMP is considered one of the largest services for the sale of illegal drugs and other illegal goods in the Russian Tor segment. According to some reports, the number of users of the resource may be about 14 thousand people. Despite the wave of closures of similar portals in the United States, RAMP has so far managed to remain active.

Screenshot of one of the pages of Russian Anonymous Marketplace

Judging by messages from site users, Russian Anonymous Marketplace buyers themselves often find themselves detained by law enforcement agencies at the time of receiving their orders. This happens due to the fact that the delivery of goods by online store dealers is often carried out through mail in vacuum bags.

RAMP's earning system is based on charging a monthly commission to main dealers and various paid options. The cost of the commission depends on the drugs that the supplier sells. The more serious and popular the substance, the greater the monetary collection. In addition, you can find several advertising banners on the site.

About income

During correspondence with a Wired journalist, the online store operator noted that he could perhaps be called a wealthy person. The total annual income of the Darkside site was estimated at 250 thousand dollars.

The resource administrator explained the relatively small level of profit in comparison with Silk Road, which was previously closed by the FBI, by saying that he does not charge a commission for each purchase, but is limited only to standard monthly payments.

Among the locals, I'm probably considered rich. It is hardly possible to live normally on my official salary. We [RAMP administrators] are not dollar millionaires. Just upper middle class, working and feeding their families.

About the “Russian model”

According to Darkside, at the beginning of the development of the online store, he was inspired by the Silk Road device system - its anonymity, integration with Bitcoin, and so on. However, Wired’s interlocutor calls RAMP a more Russian version of shadow business.

This is a classic model of Russian underground business. Less automation, more emphasis on forums, which have long been used by people to sell information and goods on the black market.

About politics

Passion for libertarianism and political principles in general always attracts excessive attention to the resource, Darkside is convinced. Therefore, as the store representative notes, he has always tried to avoid any political topics that could have a bad impact on business. All political discussions on RAMP are automatically banned.

Politics attracts attention. We don't want this. Any person should have the right to choose whether to take something or not.

O CRU

As a representative of the online store emphasized, the market’s focus on Russia is one of the main reasons why RAMP has not yet been closed by the intelligence services.

You can't just rape the whole world and remain safe. We never contact the CIA. We work only for Russians and this is exactly what makes our [business] safe. As for our servers, they are on the dark side of the moon, of course.

#Article #Wired #RAMP #Tor #anonymous_internet_drug_market #Darkside