The 2024 Dark Web Chinese Forums Report: 7 Shocking Trends And Deepmix's Rivalry With Chang'an

The landscape of the Dark Web Chinese Forums (暗 网 中文 论坛) is in a constant, volatile state of flux, driven by fierce competition, high-value data leaks, and aggressive law enforcement efforts. As of December 2025, the ecosystem remains a critical hub for financially motivated cybercrime, with threat actors focusing on lucrative targets like Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and sophisticated Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) operations. Recent updates from 2024 highlight a major shift in power dynamics and the continuous flow of vast Chinese datasets onto both domestic and international underground marketplaces.

The intensity of activity on these forums underscores a sophisticated and resilient cybercrime ecosystem that operates despite stringent government surveillance. Key players like Deepmix and its rivals continue to evolve their tactics, moving beyond simple drug sales to focus on high-stakes services like Hacking-for-Hire and the trade of billions of user records. This deep dive into the current state of the Chinese Dark Web reveals the most critical trends and entities that security researchers and businesses must monitor right now.

The Battle for Dominance: Deepmix, Chang'an, and Emerging Marketplaces

The Chinese-language Dark Web is not a unified entity; rather, it is a collection of competing marketplaces and specialized forums, each vying for the trust and business of cybercriminals. This internal rivalry often leads to dramatic shifts in user migration and public accusations of fraud, creating a highly dynamic environment.

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Deepmix: The Established Dark Web Trading Market

Deepmix, known as the "Dark Web Trading Market," has historically been one of the most prominent Chinese-language marketplaces. Established around 2013, it gained a reputation for being relatively reliable. However, its dominance has been challenged in recent years. Marketplaces like Deepmix are typically business-oriented, facilitating the sale of a wide array of illicit goods and services, often using a complex transaction system to ensure anonymity.

The Rivalry with Chang'an

The most significant development in the Chinese Dark Web ecosystem is the ongoing, public rivalry between Deepmix and a major competitor, Chang'an. Both forums prioritize user safety and anonymity, but they have engaged in mutual accusations of fraud and theft. This "forum war" is a clear indicator of the high stakes involved, as control over these platforms means control over the flow of massive financial and data assets. Reports indicate that former data providers from one site have even established separate Telegram groups and search groups, further fragmenting the market.

Other Key Entities and Marketplaces

Beyond the main rivals, several other entities contribute to the overall topical authority of the Chinese cybercrime landscape:

• Tea Horse Road: Launched in April 2020, this marketplace quickly carved out a significant niche for itself, becoming another prominent Chinese Dark Web entity.
• RAMP (Russian Anonymous Market Place): Although Russian-focused, RAMP is a multi-lingual forum where Chinese is spoken, serving as a meeting point for international threat actors.
• DarkForums: This is a major English-language data breach marketplace that has seen an increase in the sale of Chinese datasets, indicating a growing connection between the Chinese and global cybercrime communities.

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The 7 Shocking Trends Defining Chinese Dark Web Activity in 2024

The nature of commerce on the 暗 网 中文 论坛 has shifted from basic illicit goods to sophisticated, high-value cybercrime services, reflecting the increased technical skill of the actors involved. These are the most critical trends observed in 2024:

1. Massive and Diverse Data Leaks

The sheer volume and variety of compromised data available for sale is alarming. Recent reports, some as current as September 2024, show data leaks involving:

• Gambling Data: Large datasets of Chinese gambling users are frequently advertised.
• Logistics and Courier Information: Sensitive data from courier services is often compromised and sold.
• Vehicle Brand Information: Specific data related to a well-known car brand has been recently detected on the Dark Web.
• PII and Residential Data: Historically, leaks have exposed billions of records, including over 805 million WeChat IDs ("wechatid_db") and 780 million records of residential data ("address_db").

2. The Rise of Hacking-for-Hire Services

The ecosystem is heavily influenced by a "business playbook," where services are offered explicitly for hire. This includes threat actors selling breached data and specialized hacking services such as Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks and SMS hijacking. The Hacking-for-Hire industry is a major driver of financially motivated cybercrime.

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3. Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) Platforms

The commercialization of network threats continues to accelerate. Underground forums actively host and advertise RaaS platforms. Major RaaS brands that have been publicly promoted include Medusa, Wing, BEAST, and Cicada 3301. These services allow less-skilled criminals to deploy sophisticated attacks for a share of the ransom.

4. Unique Chinese Cybercrime Terminology

Chinese threat actors use unique terminology that security researchers must understand. For example, the term "Library Dragging" is a homophone used for the act of hacking sites and databases. This specialized "Threat Actor Terminology" highlights the distinct cultural and linguistic nature of this cybercrime ecosystem.

5. Focus on Fraud and Phishing Toolkits

Beyond massive data dumps, the forums are a marketplace for tools that facilitate immediate financial gain. This includes the sale of Inconsistent Name-Phone Pairs, which are crucial for social engineering and Phishing attacks, as well as various Fraud Prevention bypass tools.

6. Cross-Platform Migration and Telegram Use

As main onion sites face increasing pressure from law enforcement, threat actors are migrating to more ephemeral platforms. Telegram channels, for instance, are now frequently used alongside Dark Web forums to advertise and conduct sales, offering a less permanent and more flexible communication channel.

7. The Need for Advanced Threat Intelligence

The ongoing activity, rivalries, and data leaks underscore the critical need for organizations to implement robust Threat Intelligence and Dark Web Monitoring solutions. Companies must actively look for their exposure on these underground forums to get ahead of a major data breach or Insider Threat Identification.

Accessing and Monitoring the Chinese Dark Web Safely

For security professionals, journalists, and researchers, accessing the Dark Web is a necessary component of Censorship Circumvention and gathering Threat Intelligence. However, doing so safely, especially when dealing with Chinese-language content, requires specific precautions.

The Tor-Over-VPN Method

The safest and most recommended method for accessing Onion Sites is the Tor-Over-VPN connection. This involves connecting to a Virtual Private Network (VPN) first, and then launching the Tor Browser. This setup adds an extra layer of encryption and obfuscation, ensuring that even your Internet Service Provider (ISP) cannot see that you are connecting to the Tor network.

Circumventing the Great Firewall

For users within mainland China, accessing the Dark Web or even the general internet requires advanced Circumvention techniques due to the Great Firewall. The Tor Project itself offers reliable methods, including using Connection Assist and configuring Bridge relays, to bypass censorship and connect to the network. Using a reliable, paid VPN is also a common method to browse the web as if you were outside of China.

The Dark Web Chinese Forums remain a high-risk, high-reward environment for cybercriminals. The rivalry between Deepmix and Chang'an, coupled with the relentless stream of data leaks and the maturation of Hacking-for-Hire services, solidifies the ecosystem's role as a major global cyber threat. Continuous monitoring and advanced security protocols are the only effective defense against the sophisticated operations emanating from these underground marketplaces.