Are "Dark Web" scans legitimate, effective, or useful?

[Donny Hinson]

Are the "Dark Web" scan services offered by financial institutions and credit bureaus worth it? Do they actually do anything like remove or block your data from being seen by hackers? Can someone (a commercial service) actually scan the dark web without just compromising more of your information?

Inquiring minds would like to know.

[Ken Boi]

Interesting question as I really wasn't much informed about this topic. Some searches did lead me to the below link. It has some info on what the Experian Dark Web scan service is. Of most interest is the comments at the end. Many of the comments point out the fact that the Dark Web is not an indexed entity, therefore internet searches as we know them, are not possible in this entity. The question then becomes how would they search into these hidden areas that they indicate they will be protecting for you. And it appear they would be searching for items you make available (e.g., email address, name, SSN, etc). That scares me also. Just another chance for others to acquire more knowledge about you.

https://lendedu.com/blog/is-the-experia ... -worth-it/