- A new dark web monitoring service has been launched for Netgear customers
- Netgear Dark Web Monitoring is available on Netgear routers supporting its Armor and Armor Plus plans
- Expert analysis of the dark web shows that over 15 billion personal records are available to purchase
Netgear has announced a new service whicht conducts dark web monitoring and notifies you when your stolen data is found lurking in someone else’s database.
Announced as part of its Armor and Armor Plus plans, the Dark Web Monitoring service is available to subscribers via the Netgear app.
The dark web is the hidden arena of the internet where various “out of sight” transactions are conducted. While it has legitimate uses (such as dissidents accessing resources via Tor), it is also the home of a black market in data – typically stolen from large organizations, companies, and governments in successful hacking attempts.
Collection of tools
Owners of the data should be notified by law when their information is stolen. However, often it isn’t until personal information (and more valuable data such as company secrets or software engines) hits the dark web that companies are even aware that they have been hacked. This makes dark web monitoring services such as Netgear’s new feature particularly attractive.
Netgear’s service is added to its existing collection of tools for Armor and Armor Plus subscribers. These include protection against malware and exploits, intrusion, anomaly, and DDoS detection and protection, and a VPN with adblock and anti-tracking.
The dark web monitoring feature adds to these by offering continuous monitoring of the dark web for emails, phone numbers, and financial details lost during a data breach. National Insurance numbers are also monitored.
If anything is found, Netgear Dark Web Monitoring sends alerts and recommends actions. It also offers an Identity Protection Score to illustrate exposure, and as households improve their security the tool tracks their progress.
Finding exposed data
While free services can uncover data that has been exposed in data leaks, the dark web is home to stolen information that may not yet be disclosed. This could be because the organization that has been hacked hasn’t got around to sharing the breach with their customers – or because they don’t know it has even happened.
This makes an active monitoring service like Netgear Dark Web Monitoring particularly valuable.
“Most people think about network security as something that happens within their home,” says Jonathan Oakes, Senior Vice President and General Manager of NETGEAR’s Home Networking Division. “But your details can end up exposed somewhere else entirely, in a breach at a company you’ve never even dealt with directly. Dark Web Monitoring means finding out while there’s still time to act.”
Netgear Dark Web Monitoring is available with its routers’ Armor ($99/year) and Armor Plus ($149.99/year) plans, available to be purchased via the Netgear app.
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