An exploration of the Dark Web―websites accessible only with special routing software―that examines the history of three anonymizing networks, Freenet, Tor, and I2P.

The term “Dark Web” conjures up drug markets, unregulated gun sales, stolen credit cards. But, as Robert Gehl points out in Weaving the Dark Web, for each of these illegitimate uses, there are other, legitimate ones: the New York Times's anonymous whistleblowing system, for example, and the use of encryption by political dissidents. Defining the Dark Web straightforwardly as websites that can be accessed only with special routing software, and noting the frequent use of “legitimate” and its variations by users, journalists, and law enforcement to describe Dark Web practices (judging them “legit” or “sh!t”), Gehl uses the concept of legitimacy as a window into the Dark Web. He does so by examining the history of three Dark Web systems: Freenet, Tor, and I2P.

Gehl presents three distinct meanings of legitimate: legitimate force, or the state's claim to a monopoly on violence; organizational propriety; and authenticity. He explores how Freenet, Tor, and I2P grappled with these different meanings, and then discusses each form of legitimacy in detail by examining Dark Web markets, search engines, and social networking sites. Finally, taking a broader view of the Dark Web, Gehl argues for the value of anonymous political speech in a time of ubiquitous surveillance. If we shut down the Dark Web, he argues, we lose a valuable channel for dissent.

对暗网的探索--只有通过特殊路由软件才能访问的网站--研究了三个匿名网络Freenet、Tor和I2P的历史。

暗网 "一词让人联想到毒品市场、不受管制的枪支销售和被盗信用卡。但是，正如罗伯特-盖尔在《编织暗网》中指出的那样，对于这些非法用途，也有其他合法用途：例如，《纽约时报》的匿名举报系统，以及政治异见人士对加密的使用。盖尔将暗网直接定义为只有通过特殊路由软件才能访问的网站，并注意到用户、记者和执法部门经常使用 "合法 "及其变体来描述暗网的做法（判断它们是 "合法 "还是 "狗屁"），他将合法性的概念作为了解暗网的一个窗口。他通过研究三个暗网系统的历史来做到这一点。Freenet、Tor和I2P。

Gehl提出了合法的三种不同含义：合法的力量，或国家对暴力的垄断要求；组织的适当性；和真实性。他探讨了Freenet、Tor和I2P如何处理这些不同的含义，然后通过考察暗网市场、搜索引擎和社交网站，详细讨论了每种形式的合法性。最后，从更广泛的角度来看暗网，Gehl认为在一个监控无处不在的时代，匿名的政治言论是有价值的。他认为，如果我们关闭了暗网，我们就失去了一个宝贵的异议渠道。