Archetyp dark web market shut down, but ecosystem adapts: TRM Labs

Europol has shuttered one of the longest-running dark web marketplaces, Archetyp Market, but blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs says the marketplaces are highly adaptive to shutdowns.  

Europol said on Monday that it shut down Archetyp Market’s main infrastructure in the Netherlands through a series of raids involving six countries.

Key Archetyp personal and technical infrastructure were targeted in the raids, which saw the alleged administrator, a German national, arrested in Spain, with Europol saying they also arrested a moderator and six of the site’s largest vendors in Germany and Sweden.

Such dark web-based markets rely on cryptocurrencies for trade, and Archetyp used the privacy-focused token Monero (XMR) for its transactions.

The marketplace had operated for five years, and Europol said it took “years of intensive investigative work,” including tracing financial flows, to take down the site and its alleged operators. 

Dark web markets down but not out

Despite increasing law enforcement efforts, blockchain intelligence firm TRM Labs said in a report on Monday that even as the dark web platforms fall, “the ecosystem remains highly adaptive,” with illicit vendors setting shop on apps such as Telegram and Signal.

“These peer-to-peer models offer faster turnaround times, reduced fees, and a lower risk of platform takedown, complicating enforcement efforts,” TRM Labs said.

After the 2022 shutdown of the Russian Hydra marketplace, a new Russian market popped up to replace it almost immediately, TRM Labs said.

“Although some darknet operators, particularly of Western darknet marketplaces, have historically attempted rebrands or exit scams following law enforcement action, full-scale rebuilds appear to be becoming less common,” it added.

Archetyp comparable to Silk Road

Europol said Archetyp had a user base of more than 600,000, a total transaction volume of at least 250 million euros ($287 million) and over 17,000 listings, with most geared toward the sale of illicit drugs, including cocaine, MDMA and amphetamines.

It was also one of the few dark web markets that allowed the sale of fentanyl and synthetic opioids.

“The platform’s endurance, scale and reputation within the criminal community place it alongside now-defunct darknet markets such as Dream Market and Silk Road, both notorious for their role in facilitating online drug trafficking,” Europol said.

Dark web market operators tactics to evade law

TRM Labs said that law enforcement is having success in taking darknet platforms down, but their operators are using tactics such as pseudonymous domain registration, rapid rebranding after take downs and laundering proceeds through high-risk crypto exchanges to evade the law.

Related: Telegram shuts ‘largest darknet marketplace to have ever existed’

“The takedown of Archetyp Market is a clear signal that law enforcement agencies, supported by advanced blockchain intelligence, can disrupt even the most entrenched illicit platforms,” TRM Labs said

“But the resilience and evolution of these networks underscore the need for continued cross-border collaboration, technical innovation, and real-time monitoring to stay ahead of the next generation of darknet threats.” 

Magazine: Coinbase hack shows the law probably won’t protect you: Here’s why