Reason.com - Free Minds and Free Markets
Reason logo Reason logo
  • Latest
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Subscribe
    • Crossword
  • Video
    • Reason TV
    • The Reason Roundtable
    • Just Asking Questions
    • Free Media
    • The Reason Interview
  • Podcasts
    • All Shows
    • The Reason Roundtable
    • The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie
    • The Soho Forum Debates
    • Just Asking Questions
  • Volokh
  • Newsletters
  • Donate
    • Donate Online
    • Donate Crypto
    • Ways To Give To Reason Foundation
    • Torchbearer Society
    • Planned Giving
  • Subscribe
    • Reason Plus Subscription
    • Gift Subscriptions
    • Print Subscription
    • Subscriber Support

Login Form

Create new account
Forgot password

Economics

Google Dark

In April an anonymous individual launched a search engine called Grams that caters to contraband needs.

Zenon Evans | From the August/September 2014 issue

Share on FacebookShare on XShare on RedditShare by emailPrint friendly versionCopy page URL Add Reason to Google
Media Contact & Reprint Requests

For black market goods, many people turn to hard-to-access corners of the Internet, which generally haven't been conducive to browsing. In April, however, an anonymous individual launched a search engine called Grams that caters to contraband needs.

Known only as "Gramsadmin," the engine's creator explained to Wired, "I noticed on the forums and Reddit people were constantly asking 'where to get product X?' and 'which market had product X?' or 'who had the best product X and was reliable and not a scam?' I wanted to make it easy for people to find things they wanted on the darknet and figure out who was a trustworthy vendor."

So Grams spent two weeks building Grams, which looks a lot like Google, down to the primary color scheme and "feeling lucky" button.

In the beta version, Grams has an average time of one second for a search to load, which is generally considered fast for the web's back alleys. Grams shows results from eight different marketplaces, such as SilkRoad2, Agora, and BlackBank. For those who want to give it a whirl, "grams7enufi7jmdl.onion" is the address.

Start your day with Reason. Get a daily brief of the most important stories and trends every weekday morning when you subscribe to Reason Roundup.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

NEXT: Digital Lineups

Zenon Evans is a former Reason staff writer and editor.

EconomicsScience & TechnologyBlack MarketsInternet
Share on FacebookShare on XShare on RedditShare by emailPrint friendly versionCopy page URL Add Reason to Google
Media Contact & Reprint Requests

Show Comments (53)

Latest

It's the Economy, Not the East Wing, Stupid

Robby Soave | 11.5.2025 8:35 PM

Federal Prosecutors Flesh Out Their Case Against James Comey. It Still Looks Shaky.

Jacob Sullum | 11.5.2025 5:10 PM

New York Voters Say Yes to Faster Housing Approvals

Christian Britschgi | 11.5.2025 4:45 PM

America's Longest Government Shutdown Shows Why We Must Free Air Traffic Control from Politics

Robert Poole | 11.5.2025 3:55 PM

Trump's Attorney Concedes: His Legal Theory Would Let a President Tax Foreign Cars To Combat Climate Change

Eric Boehm | 11.5.2025 3:40 PM

Recommended

  • About
  • Browse Topics
  • Events
  • Staff
  • Jobs
  • Donate
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • Media
  • Shop
  • Amazon
Reason Facebook@reason on XReason InstagramReason TikTokReason YoutubeApple PodcastsReason on FlipboardReason RSS Add Reason to Google

© 2025 Reason Foundation | Accessibility | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Take Reason's short survey for a chance to win $300
Take Reason's short survey for a chance to win $300
Take Reason's short survey for a chance to win $300