Abstract

Common depictions of buying and selling illicit drugs online centre on how drug market actors engage in dark web drug cryptomarkets, but the supply of illicit drugs also takes place in ‘plain site’ on the surface web. Drawing on netnographic observations and qualitative interviews with hard-to-reach buyers and vendors (n = 20), this paper explores LeafedOut, a specific, popular surface web platform, that provides a conduit for local cannabis exchanges. We found that the platform enabled easy access and supply at the local level but increased some specific risks to those involved. Actors neutralised the perceived risks of drug supply over this surface web platform through the broader societal normalisation of cannabis use/supply, adopting encrypted messaging applications to cover ‘digital traces’, and developing various methods to establish trust with an exchange partner (e.g. review systems, sending selfies with drug paraphernalia, selectively choosing meet-up locations). This paper expands our understanding of the growing number of online illicit drug markets by shifting attention from dark web cryptomarkets to the much more widely accessed surface/clear web. Theoretical implications for the study of trust and risk in online illicit drug market exchanges are also considered.

摘要

在线买卖非法药物的常见描述集中在药物市场参与者如何参与暗网药物加密市场，但非法药物的供应也发生在表面网络的“普通站点”。利用网络图观察和对难以接触到的买家和供应商 ( n  = 20) 的定性访谈，本文探讨了LeafedOut，一个特定的、流行的表面网络平台，为当地的大麻交易提供渠道。我们发现该平台可以在地方一级轻松访问和供应，但增加了相关人员的一些特定风险。参与者通过大麻使用/供应的更广泛的社会规范化，采用加密消息应用程序来覆盖“数字痕迹”，并开发各种方法来建立与交换伙伴的信任（例如审查系统，发送带有吸毒用具的自拍照，选择性地选择聚会地点）。本文通过将注意力从暗网加密市场转移到更广泛访问的表面/透明网络，扩展了我们对越来越多的在线非法药物市场的理解。