# Traveling the Silk Road: A measurement analysis of a large anonymous online marketplace

**Authors:** Nicolas Christin  
**arXiv:** [1207.7139](https://arxiv.org/abs/1207.7139)  
**Date:** 2012-07-31  
**Summary page:** https://www.summarizepaper.com/en/paper/1207.7139v2/

## Key points

- The paper is about a study of Silk Road, an international online marketplace that operates as a Tor hidden service and uses Bitcoin as its exchange currency.
- The researchers analyzed data collected over eight months between the end of 2011 and 2012, including daily crawls of the marketplace for nearly six months in 2012.
- Through examining over 24,400 separate items sold on the site, they provide a detailed picture of the type of goods being sold on Silk Road and the revenues made by both sellers and operators.
- The researchers find that Silk Road is overwhelmingly used as a market for controlled substances and narcotics, with most items sold available for less than three weeks.
- A core group of 112 sellers has been present throughout their measurement interval.
- The total revenue made by all sellers from public listings is evaluated to be slightly over USD 1.2 million per month, corresponding to about USD 92,000 per month in commissions for Silk Road operators.
- Christin and his team show that the marketplace has been operating steadily, with daily sales and number of sellers overall increasing over their measurement interval.
- The paper concludes with discussions on economic and policy implications arising from their analysis results.
- Ethical considerations for future research in this area are highlighted to emphasize potential challenges associated with regulating such platforms effectively.

## Summary

In their paper "Traveling the Silk Road: A measurement analysis of a large anonymous online marketplace," Nicolas Christin and his team conduct an extensive study of Silk Road, an international online marketplace that operates as a Tor hidden service and uses Bitcoin as its exchange currency. The researchers analyze data collected over eight months between the end of 2011 and 2012, including daily crawls of the marketplace for nearly six months in 2012. Through examining over 24,400 separate items sold on the site, they provide a detailed picture of the type of goods being sold on Silk Road and the revenues made by both sellers and operators. The researchers find that Silk Road is overwhelmingly used as a market for controlled substances and narcotics, with most items sold available for less than three weeks. They also note that while the majority of sellers disappear within roughly three months of their arrival, a core group of 112 sellers has been present throughout their measurement interval. The total revenue made by all sellers from public listings is evaluated to be slightly over USD 1.2 million per month, corresponding to about USD 92,000 per month in commissions for Silk Road operators. Furthermore, Christin and his team show that the marketplace has been operating steadily, with daily sales and number of sellers overall increasing over their measurement interval. The paper concludes with discussions on economic and policy implications arising from their analysis results. Additionally, ethical considerations for future research in this area are highlighted to emphasize potential challenges associated with regulating such platforms effectively. Overall, this study provides valuable insights into how anonymous online marketplaces operate and highlights potential challenges associated with regulating such platforms effectively.