Deep web has been turning eyeballs among tech enthusiast and web geeks for quite some time now and with the shutting down of the Silk Road covering a huge chunk of the news recently, many casual web surfers have started searching for the Deep Web as well.

The internet that we can access through our regular web browsers is just the tip off the iceberg that is seen above the ocean. The Deep web forms the major portion of that iceberg which is beneath the superficial top layer of the web and is hidden from the eyes of a casual user. The top layer of the web or ‘Surface Web’ only forms 4% of the total web content, whereas, the ‘Deep Web’ houses more than 90% of the content on the web.

What is Deep Web?

All those files, databases, records and websites which are not indexed by your regular search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo forms a part of the Deep Web. Since these deep web sites are not indexed, they do not show up on your screen when you do a web search on your browser and this is why, most people have no knowledge about them.

However, most of us have used or access the Deep web knowingly or unknowingly in our lives. The hospital databases, patient records, school records, your emails and bank databases are all a part of the Deep Web. This web content can be accessed but you cannot access them directly because they are not indexed by the search engines. You require special authorization to access them, which in this case, could be software with a login id and password.

Is Deep Web illegal to Access?

Most people often confuse the Deep Web with a smaller, darker part of the web known as the Dark Web. While the Dark Web forms a miniscule part of the Deep Web, these two are very different entities. The Dark Web is the home to a number of major criminal activities while Deep web only houses those web pages which are not indexed. Both are legal to access, however, you must proceed with caution on the Dark web and try to stay clear of taking part in criminal activities.

How can you access the Deep Web through Android?

When the deep web first came into prominence, it was very difficult for people to access via their smartphones. The only way to access it was with the help of TOR Browser on your laptop or computer.

This is not the case now with a number of ways available which allows you to access the Deep Web on your Android device.

Method 1: Using Orbot on Android

The team which was behind the creation of TOR browser has created the Orbot Android Application to allow users to access Deep Web on their devices. You can setup Orbot on your smartphone by following these steps:

  1. Install Orbot from the Google Play Store
  2. Open the Application and tap on START to setup the VPN Connection.
  3. Once a successful connection is established, you will see two options on your screen – STOP and BROWSE.
  4. Click on BROWSE, type in the URL and browse the Deep Web.

Method 2: Using Orfox for Android

Another way to access the Deep web on Android is by installing Orfox on your smartphone. Orfox is a specialized web browser designed specifically to browse the hidden web on your device. Follow these instructions to configure Orfox on your Android smartphone.

  1. Search for Orfox on the Google Play Store and Install the application.
  2. Once successfully installed, you can open the application.
  3. Enter the URL of the website you want to access on the Deep Web and hit Search.

Method 3: Using Deep Web Search Engine

There is another method which allows you to access Deep Web without installing applications on your device. This method is not foolproof and can easily be hacked. This is why it is not recommended to do so.

  1. Go to your Android Web Browser and visit the website, Surfwax.
  2. This website is a search engine specifically designed for the deep web. You can use it to search for the term you are looking for on the deep web.
  3. Once the Surfwax website is loaded, type the term you want to search and hit enter.
  4. Click on any of the following search results to visit the result page.
The Final Say

Using Orfox is one of the safest ways to access Deep Web on your Android Device as this web browser is specifically developed to maintain your privacy and security on the Deep Web. You can get the links of various websites on the deep web through the help of hidden wiki directories. Just be careful while surfing on the deep web as you don’t know what you may come across on it.