Even though things were never straightforward on the darknet, the situation has become even crazier now. You must know that Televend market is like an underground store where people sell or buy all sorts of things you won’t find in your local grocery store.
But recently, things have gone a bit sideways, and the people who use Televend are starting to worry. Make sure you read till the end to discover the entire story.
The Disappearance of Televend
An Unexpected Shock
It turns out the folks who sell stuff on Televend recently found themselves locked out. They couldn’t get into their accounts or anything. It’s kind of like coming to your store one morning and finding the doors locked and the keys not working. To make it worse, the Bitcoin addresses where customers send their money got switched up. It means the money they were sending to vendors has never reached them. Instead, it was transferred to another address.
What Could Have Happened?
Now you must be wondering what happened to Televend. Well, most people think that the guys behind Televend just packed everything up and shut it down, taking all of the money with them too. It’s like a store owner who’s just shutting his spot, grabbing all of that cash, and never coming back.
On the other hand, some users of Televend market believed that law enforcement agencies like the police or FBI have taken control of the site. They suspect this because some vendors have reported strange changes to their accounts, such as their Bitcoin addresses being switched.
These users thought the FBI is running the site now, not to keep it going as a marketplace, but so they can gather evidence on the people using it in order to arrest and charge them in the future. They were suspicious that they might try to trace transactions or collect other kinds of information that could identify those people who are buying and selling illegal goods.
Televend and Its Strange Way of Doing Things
A Different Kind of Store
Televend was not a normal darknet store. It did things a little different, and some people were worried that its strange way of doing business might be a problem. Unlike most darknet markets so far, which hide behind tools to keep their activities secret, Televend relied on Telegram bots to collect customer orders.
A Risky Convenience
The ironic thing is, the things that made Televend popular probably also messed it up for good. Yeah, it was easy to use and didn’t require any special tech knowledge so it definitely drew in a lot of younger users. But this convenience could possibly make it easier for police or some other agency to keep an eye on the activities.
The Ransomware Ban: A Bold Step
A Rule in the Dark
There has been a change on the darknet community. Many of these hidden forums have banned ransomware or at least put it on a list of things that are not allowed. This ban is done to distance these types of activities from all these forums.
Impact of the Ban
But, that hasn’t totally stopped these ransomware groups. They’re still recruiting and operating, just being more careful about it.
Wrapping Up
Despite all the theories, guessing, and confusion, one thing became absolutely crystal clear by the end of 2021 – Televend Market was no more.
In the end, it shut down the platform totally. Whether done out of an exit scam staged by some of the site’s operators or law enforcement infiltration into its servers. Things are still unclear though since nobody knows the exact reason.
If I were you, I’d choose an alternative instead of getting myself into another trap. For instance, I would go for Tor2Door as one of my best darknet market alternatives. Apart from this, Incognito is doing quite well too.
Hey there, I’m a dark web geek who’s been around for the last 8 years. More precisely, I’m livedarknet’s senior content writer who’s been writing about darknet marketplaces, tutorials, and cybersecurity stuff for educational purposes.