(soft ambient music)
- [Narrator] The first version of the modern internet
came into existence in 1983,
and since its inception,
has grown from a small communications network
into a massive global cyberspace.
So much so,
that now over two thirds of the entire world's population
uses it every single day.
So much content is uploaded online
that the overall depth of information is staggering,
and in all honesty,
quite difficult to wrap your head around.
In fact,
statistics show that there is close to 75 billion zettabytes
worth of data to be viewed online.
And that's just what we know of.
And with one zettabyte being equal to a billion terabytes,
it's hard to even imagine how many videos,
images, and documents are actually out there,
most of which we'll never get to see.
That notion is especially true for those of us
who stray no further than the so-called surface web.
At the surface is where the majority of us do our browsing,
watching videos like you are right now,
using social media sites like Facebook and Instagram,
and have been searching for news and information
through sites such as Google, Bing, and Wikipedia.
Despite attracting billions of users
and trillions of views,
this surface level only makes up for about five percent
of the overall worldwide web.
Today we'll be taking a look into the deep and dark web.
More specifically,
the urban legend of Mariana's Web,
long said to be one of the darkest corners
of the already shadowy dark web.
But is it actually even real?
And if so, what could it possibly contain?
Let's take a look into the deep rabbit hole
of Mariana's Web.
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Now, let's explore Mariana's Web.
Deep and dark web.
Even if you've never accessed it,
you've most likely heard of the deep web
or the dark web,
where an overwhelming majority
of online information resides.
This includes paywalled sites,
private databases,
and stuff that isn't indexed by search engines.
Most of the deep web is legitimate
and non-criminal in nature,
consisting of things like email and chat messages,
bank statements,
medical records,
and government resources.
The dark web, as its name suggests,
is a smaller part of the deep web
associated with more illicit activity,
probably because of its secretive nature.
However, it should be pointed out
that perfectly legal services and information
can be found here as well.
Unlike the surface or deep web,
the dark web cannot be accessed
through conventional browsers like Google Chrome or Firefox.
Instead, a specific browser, most notably Tor,
uses a random path of encrypted servers to connect with.
The idea is that the user's actions
cannot then be tracked
and their browser history will not be exposed.
This anonymity is why an early version of Tor was created
to hide spy communications,
as well as why it was once considered
the province of hackers, law enforcement officers,
and cybercriminals.
Nowadays, anyone can download Tor free of charge
and access the dark web.
Though most of us would never have reason to
other than out of a kind of morbid curiosity.
Mariana's Web origins.
When explaining the depths of the internet,
a common analogy used is that of an iceberg in the ocean.
What most of us see is the surface of the iceberg
that floats above the waterline.
The deep web is the majority of the iceberg
that is submerged underwater.
The dark web is the bottom tip of the iceberg,
which most of us will never see.
But what if we were to ask the question,
"What lies beneath the iceberg itself?"
Well, the common term that as been thrown around
for quite some time is Mariana's Web.
This name,
alluding to its real-life counterpart of Mariana's Trench,
the deepest place on Earth,
only ever being visited by two human explorers,
there is still much uncertainty
as to what lies at the bottom of the trench,
being 11 kilometers deep.
Mariana's Web has long been named
as the most mysterious and dark corner of the deep web.
But for all it is talked about
as this strange, desolate place,
there isn't much information on what it actually is
other than what we are given in its name.
So what actually is Mariana's Web?
What are its origins,
and is it actually even real?
In September of 2011,
an infographic was posted to imgur.com
that included the first mention of Mariana's Web.
Titled "The Magic of the Internet,"
the poster detailed various levels of internet
against the backdrop of an iceberg,
starting off with Level 0 as the surface,
or, quote, unquote, the common web,
and progressing deeper all the way to the bottom Level 5,
being dubbed the Mariana's Web.
In the infographic,
its creator lists what can be found at each level
as well as how to access the various levels.
Among credible information
are a few eyebrow-raising bullet points
and clearly some attempts at crude humor.
At the Mariana's Web section,
a statement declares,
"All I know is that you need to solve quantum mechanics
in order to view this on even the normal web,
let alone closed servers.
Quantum computation exists,
and the government powers have them.
So be careful what you do here."
This part,
along with the term "polymeric falcighol derivation"
is where major doubts start to creep in
concerning the poster's claims.
Quantum computers and polymeric falcighol derivation.
Posited as a complex algorithm
used for accessing Mariana's Web,
polymeric falcighol derivation
does not appear to be a real thing.
In fact, it has only ever been discussed
in relation to Mariana's Web as a mathematical concept
that has never been mentioned anywhere else.
Now, you could make the case
that since Mariana's Web itself
has supposedly been kept a secret until 2011
that the accompanying access programs
would have been kept secret too.
It is a fact that several websites
need programs and settings much more advanced than Tor
to be accessed.
However, it makes the whole idea much harder to believe
and the term "polymeric falcighol derivation"
has been discounted as nonsense by mathematicians.
In terms of quantum computers,
they do exist in very limited but increasing numbers
around the world.
But consider there were only 11 in 2018,
there would have been significantly fewer, if any,
in 2011.
Of course, you could argue that they were hidden,
that their exclusivity lends itself to the myth.
Some say the powerful government bodies
and other organizations had quantum computers
well before they became public knowledge.
Others believe that Julian Assange
had access to a quantum computer and that, with it,
he was able to access government databases
and archives through Mariana's Web,
or a similar secret part of the deep web.
With that information, he was able to establish Wikileaks,
and distribute a load of sensitive material.
However, as with many theories connected to Mariana's Web,
this is pure hearsay.
There's no actual proof
that Assange actually had access to a quantum computer
or the Mariana's Web.
It's much more likely that
he received a lot of his information
directly from whistleblowers and inside sources.
Reddit slash 4chan.
In the months following the iceberg infographic's
original upload,
it was picked up by messaging forums like Reddit and 4chan.
The term "Mariana's Web" began trending intermittently
over the next few years.
The search for more information
about this hidden treasure trove intensified.
While many people were quick to call BS,
with many going as far as to say
that the original post mentioning it was an obvious troll,
other people began to make claims
that they had visited Mariana's Web.
What's more,
some claimed that a quantum computer
wasn't even needed to do so.
One 4chan user explained,
"Information on how to access this part of the web
is very difficult to find,
so a lot of people either don't believe it
or believe in the wrong information about it.
For example,
the notion that you need a quantum computer
to gain access to MW.
You actually don't."
The user then proceeded to offer step by step instructions
and links to sites with titles such as
"Classified Information,"
"Broder Engine Plans,"
and "Death Coil Tesla."
Responses to the post were mostly skeptical
and asked for proof via screenshots,
while others warned that it was just a group of hackers
that will make your life miserable if you connect
and nobody was able to verify
the original poster's claims with evidence.
In another post,
a user by the name Mr_Outlaw on Reddit
posted of his experiences on Mariana's Web.
After breaking down firewalls,
solving riddles,
and cracking encryptions,
he claims he was faced with a single question
written in Latin:
"What do you seek?"
Mr_Outlaw tried a few answers in the text box,
such as "the truth" and "enlightenment,"
but none of them were accepted.
In a moment of inspiration,
he typed "What also seeks me,"
and he was in.
Mr_Outlaw claims that then a full screen
of indecipherable links appeared.
He clicked on them one by one,
each link more disturbing than the last.
He watched a video of a SWAT team
trying to take down a humanoid creature
with scaly skin.
He found a document detailing a successful experiemnt
called "The Paragon Project,"
which delivered superhuman levels
of strength and durability.
More documents, essays about alternate dimensions,
glitches in reality,
Area 51,
the Bermuda Triangle,
and even the Holy Grail.
Then a message popped up on screen
and it asked if he was satisfied.
He clicked no.
Four links appeared on the screen
and he clicked on the first one.
According to Mr_Outlaw,
what then appeared on his screen
was some kind of moving imagery,
but nothing he could recognize or even comprehend.
He believes it had been a glimpse into another dimension,
beyond our understanding.
He lasted 20 seconds before he had to turn it off.
In Mr_Outlaw's following post,
he detailed a tale of men coming to take his computer,
a murder,
secret meetings with spies,
torture,
and ultimately a return to some kind of normality.
But obviously,
all of this seems like some strange tale
and it's hard to believe any of what Mr_Outlaw said.
Another story appeared on Reddit's No Sleep message board
simply called "Mariana's Web."
User zachariusfrost ends the lengthy post
with the following,
"What if there is some artificial intelligence
deep within the deepest depths of the internet?
It does contain the vast majority of human knowledge,
after all,
and who's to say what it could do with all that information.
Ideas live forever on the internet,
and so do programs.
All it takes is one single file to align itself
in the perfect way
and our world would never be the same.
The world may never know the truth,
but I'd be willing to bet it soon will.
Perhaps the countdown has already begun.
But don't worry, all of this is just a theory, after all.
And what do I know anyways?
I'm just a computer program."
Clearly a talented storyteller
based on his post history,
zachariusfrost's tale, while likely made up,
ties into one of the persistent theories
surrounding Mariana's Web,
that it could be a superintelligent computer
or robot system.
As with other theories, though,
it remains just that,
with no proof or evidence to back it up.
Critical response.
In August of 2013,
a paper titled "On the Cultural Power
of the 'Mariana's Web' Meme"
appeared online written by Robert Gehl.
In it the author writes,
"The infographic is a joke, specifically a troll,
an attempt to see who 'bites'
and believes that there is such a thing
as a 'Mariana's Web.'"
He concludes his paper by suggesting that
the Mariana's Web is indeed real,
"but only in the sense it becomes real
through internet meme practices
of imitation and transformation.
In other words, life imitates art."
During his research,
Gehl found that someone actually set up a Tor hidden service
with the name "Mariana's Web,"
most likely cashing in on the hype
surrounding the myth at the time.
It turned out to just be a list of facts about cats,
claiming that "One must read all cat facts
before entry to Mariana's Web is approved.
Skipping a cat fact will be noticed by the powers that be
and your entry will be declined."
Clearly this was an extension of the meme
as nobody ever got further
and the Tor service no longer exists.
Gehl also points out that myths matter to people
and warned that conspiracy theories
have real-world effects.
But that was about it.
In June of 2018,
"The Infographic Show" on YouTube
discussed multiple common rumors
surrounding Mariana's Web,
such as being a darker version of the dark web,
the idea that it was an advanced AI system,
and that it contains a database of X-files
like the Vatican Secret Archives.
Plus they spoke of the quantum computer
and polymeric falcighol derivation
needed to access it.
They also raised the possibility
that Mariana's Web was fabricated by hackers
who were being blackmailed by the FBI.
The reason,
to distract attention away from FBI crackdowns
on the dark web.
As of now,
the video has been viewed over 2.1 million times.
The top comment, with over 1.6 thousand upvotes
is from Bonachos, who simply says,
"Marian's web is more of a creepypasta than reality."
A more insightful and thought-provoking comment
underneath it comes from Samuel Thompson, who wrote,
"Any mathematician will tell you
that the function/algorithm you described
is not real at all,
just a load of Quantum Woo.
Even the access to the layer above that
requiring a 'closed shell system'
is also an ironic joke,
because all that term is just garbled computer jargon
when extrapolating the real terminology from it,
it essentially means a computer
that has no access to the internet.
Beyond that, the idea that corporations and governments
actually keep sensitive documents on any kind of internet
is inherently silly.
Almost anything confidential to large organizations
is usually kept on an intranet,
or more sensibly, offline altogether
(for obvious security reasons)."
And I have to say I definitely agree with this commenter.
Ultimately, in their video,
"The Infographic Show" noted
that there was no concrete evidence
that clearly proves or disproves its existence.
Four years later,
and over a decade since the appearance
of the original iceberg image,
annoyingly that still seems to be mostly the case.
However, I do think that it makes more sense
to lean on the side of caution.
As the complete lack of hard evidence
makes it quite hard to believe
that there is anything real
in association with Mariana's Web,
the most likely answer to the mystery
and myth of Mariana's Web
is that it's just that,
a myth,
with a name created by a user with an active imagination,
or simply just as a troll.
I do think it's important to note though
that while the idea of Mariana's Web
existing on the deep web under its name
is seemingly nothing more than a joke,
the ideal of what Mariana's Web represents
is actually very real.
As you go further down into the deep web,
the links to sites that want to stay hidden, do,
and there is no real way to access the bulk of them
unless the creator gives you a direct link.
This is simply the reality of non-indexed websites.
So while the urban legend of Mariana's Web itself
might not be real,
the notion that there is a deep hidden layer to the dark web
with who knows what on it is very possible.
Mariana's Web is an intriguing mystery
because it plays on our fears of the unknown
and sparks for a long-lasting curiosity.
From the start,
we are told it's practically impossible to access,
yet the thought of an entry into an exclusive club
with hidden secrets
is too interesting for some to pass up.
It's another potential adventure
and a reason for internet detectives
to dive in head-first.
Or it could have been,
had it been taken more seriously by the original poster
and not so widely been discredited.
Perhaps that was intended though.
The whole thing just being a joke
that was never supposed to garner the attention
and buzz that it did.
What do you guys think though?
Is there any chance that Mariana's Web
or an equivalent in principle
actually exists,
or was it always just intended to be a joke
with no real-life basis?
Let me know in the comments below.
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