Based on the literature review, supply-side approaches were assessed as being too simplistic (Udrisard et al., 2022). As already indicated, a range of sources of acquisition and delivery methods are used for herbal cannabis and cannabis resin in Europe (see Tables Sources of acquisition for herbal cannabis and cannabis resin and Delivery methods for herbal cannabis and cannabis resin). Nevertheless, the findings suggest that it is important to analyse the herbal cannabis and cannabis resin markets separately (Vuolo and Matias, 2022). Signs of low-THC herbal cannabis being adulterated with synthetic cannabinoids was reported to the EU Early Warning System in 2020, when clients of EU-based drug-checking services reported experiencing unusual effects after consuming cannabis. The generalizability is specific to Hydra and may not apply to other darknet markets or regions. Russia’s unique socioeconomic context, for instance, influences drug trade dynamics differently than in other countries.
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- Wastewater analysis can also detect fluctuations in patterns of illicit drug use across the week.
- Buying weed from the dark web can be a safe and convenient option for those who live in areas where it is not legal.
- The distribution of the supply of opiates by regions of Russia is more concentrated in the European and southern parts of the country.
- It should be noted that the results of the EWSD cannot readily be generalised to any larger populations.
- It is important to use a pseudonym and a different email address than your personal one, preferably secured email address.
- Overall, cannabis (THC-COOH) was found to be distributed evenly over the whole week.
In the generalized mixed modeling analyses, the lockdown phase “during” was the reference group (0). As all data were collected from an open and freely accessible anonymized online data source (Telegram), no informed consent could be collected. As no data were collected prospectively for the presented analyses and there were no participants subjected to research procedures, this study was exempted from medical ethics approval in the Netherlands. In this article, we present an evaluation of online psychoactive substance trade via Telegram, a free encrypted social media messenger service. The evaluation took place during the COVID-19 pandemic, which allowed us to monitor the effects of the spring 2020 lockdown in the Netherlands on substance trade via Telegram.
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However, the proportion of participants who reported buying from friends and street dealers differed greatly between the seven countries included in the study. Notably, 90 % of respondents from the Netherlands reported coffeeshops as their supply source. The THC-COOH loads observed in wastewater in 2022 indicate that cannabis use was highest in western and southern European cities, in particular the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain, but also in Czechia. In countries with multiple study locations, no marked differences were found in the THC-COOH loads when comparing large and small cities.
For example, recent investigations have found that the synthetic psychedelic drug 2C-B has become more prevalent in rural areas of Scotland due to its availability on the dark web. Similarly, methamphetamine use has surged in rural American areas, with rates now surpassing those in urban areas, likely due in part to easier access through online platforms. Aggressive online marketing by sellers also boosts awareness of, and accessibility to, drugs in areas where exposure to them is limited offline or among consumers who may not have encountered these substances through traditional channels.
Cannabis Has Become More Affordable For European Consumers
The most recent data available on last-year use indicate that the largest retail markets for herbal cannabis and cannabis resin continue to be located in western and southern Europe. Specifically, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain, which together represent about 61.5 % of the total EU population (Eurostat, 2022), accounted for about 72 % of Europe’s estimated 22.6 million last-year cannabis users (aged 15-64) in 2021. For comparison, that is six times the number of last-year users of Europe’s second-most consumed drug, cocaine, estimated at some 3.5 million people in 2021 (EMCDDA and Europol, 2022). Young adults (15-34) make up the majority of last-year cannabis users in Europe, representing an estimated 15.8 million people in 2021.
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Overall, research to develop alternative biomarkers is needed and caution is required when interpreting trends based on THC-COOH loads in wastewater. Several developments already raised in this report have likely contributed to the increase in resin potency. These include the introduction of new cannabis strains and new cultivation and resin extraction techniques in Morocco (see Section Cannabis resin production outside the EU). In addition, it is also possible that the amount of high-potency cannabis resin produced in Europe is increasing. The study’s scope is limited by data scope, reliability, and reliance on the darknet marketplace.
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Cimon is committed to putting light on underground Internet activities and has years of experience studying and writing about the dark corners of the internet. The thoroughness, precision, and clarity of Cimon’s work are highly acclaimed, and they are dedicated to giving readers interesting, engrossing information on the dark web. If you have access to lab testing, this can be a surefire way to identify fake weed. The lab can test for the presence of certain chemicals or additives that are not present in genuine weed. Some fake weed packages may have spelling errors, incorrect logos or fonts, or be made of low-quality materials. Genuine weed should come in high-quality packaging with correct labeling and branding.
Access To A Larger Selection Of Products
Herbal cannabis, the most prevalent product, was reported as shipping primarily from Germany (44 %), Spain (14 %), the Netherlands (11 %) and France (8 %). The COVID-19 pandemic does not seem to have impacted overall levels of cannabis use in Europe. However, it appears to have affected patterns of use, with more frequent herbal cannabis users consuming more and infrequent users consuming less, on average.
- This further complicates monitoring efforts because now you need to search for the related Telegram channels and track activity there and on the marketplace itself.
- The months and years after Silk Road’s closure were marked by a greatly increased number of shorter-lived markets as well as semi-regular law enforcement takedowns, hacks, scams and voluntary closures.
- Trusted by 10,000+ users and 800+ vendors, its 2FA and escrow networks ensure top privacy.
- One of the most common is the exit scam, where a marketplace suddenly disappears and takes everyone’s money with it.
- To purchase weed from the dark web, you must first understand what the dark web is.
Studying illicit drug circulation and its effects on population health is complicated due to the criminalization of trade and consumption. Illicit drug markets have evolved with IT, moving digital to the “darknet.” Previous research has analyzed darknet market listings and customer reviews. Research tools include public health surveys and medical reports but lack neutral data on drugs’ spread and impact.
To fill such data gaps, information on quantities used can be collected via non-representative surveys that specifically target people who use drugs. This is the basis for using data from the European Web Survey on Drugs to develop an EU-level estimate of the illicit cannabis market. A small proportion of the listings on darknet markets in 2021 included cannabis concentrates and edibles. Germany (32 %) and Spain (27 %) dominated as the shipping origins for concentrates. Edible products appeared to be generally imported from North America for further redistribution within the EU, and were then typically shipped from Spain (31 %), France (22 %) and Germany (16 %). At the country-level, however, some differences are observable (see Table Sources of acquisition for herbal cannabis and cannabis resin).
The 10 Biggest Dark Web Markets In 2025 – Updated List & Security Insights
Archetyp powers 28,000+ listings and $3.5M monthly trades on BTC and XMR, securing a 6% market slice. Its 12,000+ users and 900+ vendors rely on a 95% trust rating, making it a go-to for quality-focused trading in the onion network. From all this, we conclude that the internet-based cannabis market is characterised by monopolistic competition, where many sellers offer differentiated products with quality variation causing dispersion of cannabis prices. Despite the growth in the number of online marijuana sales that the EMCDDA counted, the group notes that overall revenue from those sales appears to have dropped during the same period. That’s because while small-quantity retail sales of marijuana increased, the large-quantity wholesale buys that make up a large fraction of the dark web drug business diminished. On the cannabis-only market Cannazon, which accounted for the majority of sales measured in the study and was the only market where the researchers were able to glean price data, sales fell from around $2.1 million in January to $1.7 million in March.
Nonetheless, listings provide a useful indicator of the activity on darknet markets. The dataset encompassed 3045 individual sellers marketing 6721 unique products via 58,563 distinct postings, each representing specific quantities sold in different Russian regions during 2019. In the second stage, we collected 31 variables from official sources to compare officially collected data with darknet data about amounts and types of selling drugs in every 85 regions of Russia. The health-related data were obtained from official published sources—statistical yearbooks.
