From data breach to dark web: what happens to your data after it has been stolen?

Every organization is familiar with the concept of 'data breach'. But what actually happens after such an incident? Where does that information end up and how big is the risk for your organization if you don't act quickly?

Imagine... A login set of your organization is captured through a phishing attack or by exploiting a vulnerability in software. Think of a username, password or e-mail address. Maybe even customer data or internal documents. Many organizations quietly hope that this will remain 'within limits'. But the reality is different: this data often turns up in the digital underworld, the dark web, within a few hours.

The dark web: digital marketplace for stolen data

The dark web is no longer a vague or obscure concept. It has grown into an organized ecosystem in which cybercriminals target stolen data. On encrypted marketplaces, private forums and protected chat channels (out of reach of search engines), entire datasets are traded or even shared for free. Not infrequently to build reputation within criminal networks.

What you can encounter there leaves little to the imagination:

• Employee credentials, such as Microsoft 365 accounts of HR managers or IT administrators

• Access data to business applications such as SharePoint, CRM systems, or Azure

• Sensitive customer data, including payment information, medical records, or passport scans

• Internal documents such as tender files, annual plans or roadmap presentations

The scale on which this is happening is growing rapidly. Research by RTL Nieuws showed that by 2024, as many as 5,100 digital copies of Dutch passports could be found on the dark web. These documents were captured through ransomware attacks on Dutch organizations. According to an analysis by NordVPN , a copy of a passport on the dark web costs an average of $600, with peaks of up to thousands of dollars, depending on the origin of the document.

The number of organizations that fall victim to such data theft is also growing explosively. On May 1, 2019, Cybercrimeinfo documented a data breach for the first time, the stolen data of which ended up on the dark web. Since then, they have published an annual overview of new incidents. In the 2025 edition , it appears that 20,516 organizations worldwide have fallen victim to data theft whose data has been published on the dark web. By comparison, in 2024 that number was still at 13,707. An increase of almost 50 percent in one year.

These figures underline what many are already noticing in practice: the dark web is no longer the back door of the internet, but a mature criminal market. It requires mature digital resilience, from awareness to structural measures.

Why visibility into the dark web is essential

Most security strategies stop at the boundaries of your own network. But cybercriminals work outside of that. It is precisely there, in criminal networks, that decisions are made that affect your organization. With dark web monitoring , you get a grip on that external threat landscape. It gives you a crucial head start in time and information. You will receive signals as soon as:

• Login details of your domain are offered

• IP addresses or systems of your organization are mentioned

• Your brand or organization name pops up in criminal discussions

Such signals are indispensable for a proactive security approach. Stolen credentials have become one of the most common ways attackers get in. The number of ransomware incidents continues to rise, with in many cases the starting point being traced back to leaked credentials from the dark web.

From reactive to proactive

Dark web monitoring enables organizations to stay ahead of risks. Instead of only taking action after an incident, you receive timely signals that indicate possible attacks. This shifts your approach from recovery to prevention. In other words: from damage control to risk management.

Don't stay blind after a leak

A data breach rarely marks the end of an attack; It is often the beginning of a new chain of threats. Without insight into what happens to your data after it has been stolen, your organization remains vulnerable. Active monitoring on the dark web gives you the opportunity to intervene early and thus protect not only your digital environment, but also your reputation, trust and continuity.

Wondering if your data is circulating on the dark web? We are happy to help you gain insight.