An assessment of the state of firearm sales on the Dark Web

ABSTRACT

Western law enforcement agencies have made multiple arrests targeting individuals purchasing firearms on Dark Web platforms in recent years, as these transactions may violate national laws and facilitate offline violence. Despite its market presence and growth, research exploring these online illicit markets has been scant, especially as it relates to how firearms are priced on the Dark Web, and the factors that influence their price point. Given this gap in the literature, the current study utilized a sample of 287 firearm products across 20 Dark Web vendors operating in both crypto markets and shops to identify the range and pricing model of illicit weapons. Analyses revealed that long guns offered on the Dark Web had lower average listed prices than their manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP), while handguns had higher advertised prices than their recommended retail value. Further, products’ MSRP was a significant predictor of firearms’ price point for both handguns and long guns, whereas offering a customer service line was only significant for handguns’ price point. The implications of this analysis for our understanding of illicit online market operations are discussed in detail.

KEYWORDS:

• Firearms
• illicit markets
• dark web

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s). The opinions and findings expressed are those of the researchers and not of the funding agency, its employees, or staff.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Department of Homeland Security under Grant 17STCIN00001-02-00.

Notes on contributors

Jin R. Lee

Jin R. Lee is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Criminology, Law and Society at George Mason University. His research interests are in cybercrime, online interpersonal violence, cybersecurity, cyberpsychology, computer-mediated communications, and big data.

Thomas J. Holt

Thomas J. Holt is a Professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University, and its Director. His research focuses on computer hacking, malware, and the role of the Internet in facilitating all manner of crime and deviance. He received his PhD from the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 2005.

Olga Smirnova

Olga Smirnova is an Associate Professor at the MPA program, the Department of Political Science, East Carolina University. Her research interests include green transportation innovations, contracting out, program evaluation, economic development, and performance measurement.