What are deep and dark web credit card sites?
Deep and dark web credit card sites include forums and marketplaces that host the trade and share of illicit content relating to credit cards.
Unlike the forums, online credit card marketplaces, also known as credit card shops, serve as a prime online space for the trade of credit card information and for the distribution of tools that help dark web users to abuse financial and personal data. These data and tools allow cyber criminals to commit different types of financial cybercrimes, including conducting unauthorized transactions, trading prepaid cards and gift cards, stuffing cards, stealing and taking over accounts, laundering money, and other forms of fraud and scamming.
Card-not-present (CNP) fraud is expected to account for $9.49 billion in loss in 2024, a category of fraud made via online transactions, telephone, or mail, during which a fraudulent payment is made when the card is not presented to the merchant for verification. As one of the prominent platforms supporting such activities, card shops make carrying out such scams relatively easy and popular.
This post will discuss deep and dark web credit card sites, specifically the top illicit credit card shops.
What can be found on deep and dark web credit card shops?
The listings of credit card details on credit card sites can be generally divided into two categories:
Category #1: Details needed for fraudulent online purchases
This category, also known on the dark web as “CVV”, includes partial or full information about the compromised credit card and its owner, such as:
- Bin number
- Credit card number
- CVV (Card Verification Value) number
- Date of expiry
- Bank name
- The information of the card owner, such as:
- Full name
- Physical address
- Phone number
- Email address
- SSN (Social Security Number)
- Date of birth
These details are needed to make purchases online only.
Category #2: Details needed for physical fraudulent use
This category, which is called “Dump” on the dark web, refers to the magnetic strip raw data of credit cards, such as:
- Bank account number
- Account balance
- Service code
- PIN code / Card verification code
- Date of expiry
These details are needed for physical use such as withdrawing money from ATMs.
In addition to these types of listings, there are other free tools usually available on credit card sites. These tools include for example different types of checkers, which assist threat actors in verifying whether the stolen card information they possess is valid and can be used to make unauthorized purchases. Some of the common checkers available on the website include “CVV checker” and “Dump checker.” There are dark web credit card sites that also provide data generators such as the “Track1 generator” that helps fraudsters in creating fake raw data usually stored on the magnetic stripe of a credit card.
So where is credit card information leaked on dark web? Let’s take a look at the top dark web credit card sites today.
The Top 6 deep and dark web credit card sites
We have decided to list the top credit card sites and marketplaces according to a number of criteria, including:
- Their level of popularity and reputation among financial fraudsters
- Their high performance
- The number of listings related to stolen credit cards
Now let’s review them:
Brief Bio: BidenCash
- Established: 2022
- Operating network: Tor, open web
- Illicit content: CVVs
- Price range: $0.03-$28 per listing
- Type of users: Buyers
BidenCash shop was established in April 2022, following the seizure of other card shops and carding platforms by the Russian authorities. Since its inception, it has been attracting the attention of both old and new cybercriminal customers.
After it relaunched in June 2022, BidenCash initiated a promotional campaign that included sharing a dump of 8 million lines of compromised data for sale, which included thousands of stolen credit cards.
Since then, BidenCash has continued to operate using the “dumping” method. This involves adding daily listings of stolen credit card details to the site and periodically dumping large amounts of stolen credit card details at the same time.
The site’s administrators use several web skimmers and infostealer malware to gather both daily and dump-related listings. Only a week ago, the website launched another promotional campaign to celebrate its one-year anniversary. As part of the celebration, the site dumped over 2 million stolen credit card details, this time free of charge:
BidenCash is considered to be one of the most popular credit card sites today and serves as the official sponsor of the popular credit card site Crdpo.
Brief Bio: Real and Rare
- Established: 2020
- Operating network: Tor, open web, Telegram
- Illicit content: CVVs, Dumps, databases of SSN and DOB (date of birth), CVV checker, Dump checker, Bin checker, Netscape to JSON cookie converter, Track1 generator
- Price range: 10-150$ per listing
- Type of users: Vendors and buyers
Since it was established in 2020, Real and Rare has been considered to be a stable credit card site that suffered very few downtimes. The number of card packages offered on the site has consistently increased, and today it also has an active Telegram channel from which it operates and sells stolen credit card details and announces new dumps.
Since Real and Rare serves vendors as well as consumers, it offers its users a referral program that provides them with their own personal referral URLs, which they can hand to new users and get a 10% commission for every purchase they make. This is how the site admins encourage users to post their stolen credit card details on their site first.
All of these features, its competitive pricing, along with the volume of credit card information listings, make Real and Rare one of the prime sites to trade credit card information online.
Brief Bio: Brian’s Club
- Established: 2019
- Operating network: Tor, open web
- Illicit content for sale: Dumps, CVVs, Fullz (full information per card), dumps checker, CVV2 checker, Track1 Generator
- Price range: $13-$90 per listing
- Type of users: Vendors and buyers
Brian’s Club is a credit card site with many features, including the ability to search stolen credit card dumps with Track 1 and Track 2 codes (the codes that restore the credit or debit information held on the card, typically stored on a computer chip or the magnetic stripe), billing address and physical addresses.
Users can also buy credit cards including CVV2 numbers and SSNs. Another unique feature Brian’s Club has is the auctions it offers during which users can reserve, bid, and outbid other users who want to purchase exotic BINs. Active buyers are also eligible for free gifts and dumps depending on their volume.
Brief Bio: Russian Market
- Established: 2018
- Operating network: Tor, open web
- Illicit content: CVV, Dumps, RDP (for unauthorized access to a client or server), Stealer logs (stolen digital fingerprints), PROs (stolen accounts per domain), BIN checker, Netscape to JSON cookie converter, Track1 generator
- Price range: $4-$150 per listing
- Type of users: Vendors and buyers
Russian Market is considered to be one of the most popular, reliable, and valuable marketplaces. Unlike the name implies, Russian Market operates in English and doesn’t necessarily have a link to Russia or Russian speakers.
It specializes in the sale of data from stolen credit cards alongside other PII-related information such as Paypal account logins, IP addresses, cookies, and credentials of users.
The prices of the products listed on the site tend to range between a few tens of dollars to a few hundred dollars (payment is accepted in Bitcoin, Litecoin, or Ethereum), which makes it pretty affordable. The site offers some built-in tools such as a Bin Checker, Paypal Cookie Converter, Track1 Generator, and a script to convert Netscape to JSON cookies.
Brief Bio: Wizardshop
- Established: 2022
- Operating Network: openweb, TOR, telegram
- Illicit content: CVVs, dumps, Bins, SSNs, documents, RDP, CC and dump checkers, fullz
- Price range: $0.85-$25
- Type of users: Buyers
Wizardshop.cc was established in 2022, and offers a wide range of leaked CVVs, database dumps and even RDPs. In the past 6 months, the site has increased the volume of cards sold, placing itself as one of the top sites selling credit cards today. The site has a unique news section, where the admin updates the buyers about new leaks and dumps, the source of the dumps, structural site updates and more.
Zunostore
- Established: 2022
- Operating Network: openweb, TOR, telegram
- Illicit content: CVVs and Dumps
- Price range: $3-$18
- Type of users: Buyers
Zunostore is a credit card and dump store established in 2022. Although it offers leaks from many different countries, the site has a dedicated lookup and leak section for Canadian profiles, making it extremely easy to use for buyers interested in Canadian leaks. The site also has a unique news section, listing new leaks and their size.
Why monitor deep and dark web credit card sites?
Deep and dark web credit card sites are illicit by definition since they focus on selling various illegal products that enable threat actors to carry out financial fraud, money laundering, and other crimes relating to credit cards. Stolen credit cards and their details are added and bought on these shops on an hourly basis, and more and more markets launch a matching forum and/or a Telegram channel to keep expanding and supporting criminal online activity.
The data posted on these online illicit shops is a goldmine for threat actors who are looking to commit financial crimes. It provides them with valuable information needed to carry out a variety of attacks.
Detecting dark web and deep web credit card fraud
With the growing threat from cybercriminals who sell stolen credit card information on the deep web and dark web, businesses need to stay ahead of the game. Over the years several advanced tools have been developed to help track and prevent such fraudulent activities.
Here are a couple of ways you can leverage technology for proactive defense:
Dark web monitoring tools
Dark web monitoring platforms, such as Lunar, provide an automated solution to safeguard personal identifiable information (PII) and credit card details. These platforms continuously scour the deep and dark web, looking for any traces of your sensitive information. By setting up alerts, businesses can receive notifications whenever their PII or credit card information appears in suspicious contexts. This proactive monitoring enables businesses to track and investigate potential threats in real-time, helping to prevent fraud before it can impact their operations. The use of such platforms is crucial for maintaining the integrity and security of customer data, and it provides an additional layer of defense against cybercriminal activities.
Credit card monitoring alerts
Many credit card issuers offer real-time alerts for suspicious activities on their accounts. These alerts are invaluable for early detection of fraudulent transactions. By receiving instant notifications of any unusual activity, businesses can take immediate action to protect their accounts and mitigate any potential damage. This can include freezing the affected account, contacting the card issuer for further investigation, and informing customers about the breach to take necessary precautions. Such timely interventions can significantly reduce the financial and reputational risks associated with credit card fraud.
Importance of early detection
Early detection is key in the fight against credit card fraud. The sooner you become aware of compromised information, such as stolen credit card numbers on dark web, the faster you can take steps to mitigate damage. Rapid response can prevent unauthorized transactions, minimize financial losses, and protect your customers’ trust in your business. By leveraging dark web monitoring platforms and credit card monitoring alerts, businesses can stay one step ahead of cybercriminals, ensuring a robust defense against the ever-evolving threat of credit card fraud on the deep and dark web.
Monitoring the activity on these platforms is crucial for fraud detection, brand protection, and financial intelligence. Because of the level of anonymity, these sites allow cybercriminals, it is critical to use powerful dark web monitoring tools, such as Webz.io’ Lunar, to track emerging financial and reputational threats.