Grams (search)
Discontinued search engine / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Grams is a discontinued search engine for Tor based darknet markets launched in April 2014,[5] and closed in December 2017.[6] The service allowed users to search multiple darknet markets for products like drugs and guns from a simple search interface,[5] and also provided the capability for its users to hide their transactions through its bitcoin tumbler Helix.
 | |
Type of site | Darknet market search engine |
|---|---|
| Available in | English |
| URL | grams7enufi7jmdl.onion (defunct) [1][2][3][4] |
| Launched | 2014 |
| Current status | Closed in 2017 |
The services used a custom API to scrape listings from several markets such as Alpha Bay and others, to return search listings.[5] The site is described by the Global Drug Policy Observatory to have "transformed how people search the hidden web".[7]
In May 2014 the site added Gramwords, a service similar to Google's AdWords search sponsorship system for vendors.[8] Additionally their profile system allows for cross-market vendor contact details and reviews to be held centrally.[9]
Later that year in June the creators released Grams Flow, a clearnet to Tor redirection service serving various dark net sites[10] and in November, a banner advertising network for Tor sites, TorAds[11][12] which has not yet had much success.[13]
'InfoDesk' allows central content and identity management for vendors, reducing the complexity of around maintaining presences on multiple markets.[14]
On December 9, 2017, the Grams administrator left a PGP signed message on the Reddit subreddit r/Grams stating that all Grams services, including the Helix tumbler, would be shut down on December 16, 2017.[15]