This is an archived post. You won't be able to vote or comment.

Agora NewsAgora to Pause Operations (self.AgMarketplace)

47 points48 points submitted by AgoraMarketModerator - announcement

Blue Banner on site, copied from the DNM sub:

https://www.reddit.com/r/DarkNetMarkets/comments/3idjrj/agora_to_pause_operations/

Message located at agorahooawayyfoe.onion/info/pausingoperations

I'll work on formatting their message properly for Reddit... I'll be amazed if this works on the first try:

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA512

Recently research had come that shed some light on vulnerabilities in 
Tor Hidden Services protocol which could help to deanonymize server 
locations. Most of the new and previously known methods do require 
substantial resources to be executed, but the new research shows that 
the amount of resources could be much lower than expected, and in our 
case we do believe we have interested parties who possess such 
resources.

We have a solution in the works which will require big changes into our 
software stack which we believe will mitigate such problems, but 
unfortunately it will take time to implement. Additionally, we have 
recently been discovering suspicious activity around our servers which 
led us to believe that some of the attacks described in the research 
could be going on and we decided to move servers once again, however 
this is only a temporary solution.

At this point, while we don't have a solution ready it would be unsafe 
to keep our users using the service, since they would be in jeopardy. 
Thus, and to our great sadness we have to take the market offline for a 
while, until we can develop a better solution. This is the best course 
of action for everyone involved.

In the mean time we shall do our best to clear all outstanding orders 
and we ask all of you users who have money on their accounts, withdraw 
them as soon as possible, because we don't want to be responsible for it
 during the time when the market will be offline.

During this time, there might be some delays in payouts, since many 
people are expected to withdraw money at the same time, but we intend to
 resolve any such issues in the end. But we advice you to use only 
destination bitcoin addresses that do not expire when you send money out
 from Agora, as the payments to them might get delayed.

While the market is offline, do not send any bitcoin to any of your 
deposit addresses on Agora. We do not gurantee the safety of any funds 
sent there.

Vendors, we strongly advice you to abort any orders that haven't been 
sent out or processed yet, as we cannot gurantee what will happen with 
the orders in resolution. We shall try to resolve it on a case-by-case 
basis, but there might not be time to wait for orders that require long 
shipping times.

We are going to handle the situation with the vendor bonds soon, we need
 some time to make sure that noone uses this as an opportunity to start 
scamming wildly.

All of the market data will be kept intact and be available upon return,
 including all of the user history and profile data.


Since our PGP key is nearing expiration date, here is a new PGP key 
which could be used to check authenticity of our messages in the future.


- -----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
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=xcF3
- -----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
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=IIZh
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
all 109 comments
sorted by:
best
topnewcontroversialoldq&a

[–]xollero 14 points15 points  (16 children)

Apparently this is the research in question: Ars article, and the actual research paper here (PDF).

Summary: 1) take a 'fingerprint' of how a specific hidden service's request/response exchanges typically go (in terms of packet size, frequency, patterns over a period of time etc), which turns out to be fairly accurate for identifying the specific service apparently, 2) set up entry guards (nodes that see the actual IP of a party), 3) wait until you have a target hidden service connect to you and be pushing/receiving traffic that matches your fingerprinting, and you have a pretty good idea of who the true source of the hidden service is. Potentially devastating in the cases where it works... but at a glance, it sure seems like it should be easy to trip the fingerprinting up.

Seems really odd that Ag would shut down over this, a month after it was known (maybe there is some other more recent research that they're concerned about as well, not just this?). There would seem to be pretty simple ways not only for Tor to address this kind of attack globally in an update, but for an individual site to thwart the fingerprinting too, without having to do any major re-architecting - just add a good amount of random padding / invisible nonsense to requests (with dummy hidden fields etc that users submit) and in server responses.

[–]mtGOXisnextbigthing 6 points7 points  (0 children)

in the big picture -- you're trying to outfox the NSA at something involving computers

that. in itself. is a pretty astronomical feat.

I just think its easy to lose sight of that.

these guys didnt give a fuck about us in 2012

but now they look like jerks for not being able to beat us at the cat/mouse game. so they are dedicating actual effort towards it. which means - get the fuck out of this game yesterday.

ask marc emery if the rules matter

[–]asdqwe1230 4 points5 points  (2 children)

I am personally quite worried of what might be behind this decision. Agora has shown great resilience thru disclosure of serious vulnerabilities in the past.

I would take this as a subtle but possibly very serious warning, and consider these circumstances if doing further business over TOR, which is now a battlefield made mainstream, and that a pretty good time back already.

There are millions aware of and using it for similar purposes now. Its getting a bit crowdy .. Although likely taking some effort to get the initial pass, would encourage others to look for alternate arenas for continuing this adventure we've had here. I wouldn't be surprised if Agora were to turn up something very different than TOR, or at least TOR alone, when or if they do turn up again.. let's hope they do, and find reason to feel safe, and invite us in again. There are far between as good admins as we had at Agora, indeed.

I would be quite hesitant to do business with people not displaying a high level of alert and using every layer of stealth, who remain hiding behind TOR only (plus possibly bridges & a VPN or few, tops, likely), as the inevitable stream of newbs has been lead here, sadly many have been shown places they were lacking sufficient competance to protect themselves with, were it not for the crowd-protection and early warning signs, and many have surely been lucky so far, as there are far too many sloppy people out there still.

Again, though I'm just some random newb loser in the crowd.. would again, strongly advice, people take their free time and spend more of it in front of the computer and exploring new areas of potential future settlement while keeping up-to-date and learning more about privacy and security online.

It's that one little sloppy mistake that people regret the rest of their lives... "just once, seems so safe ... ".

Besides the sad news in itself, imo. signifies dark clouds in the distance, and time to take cover.. and likely try settle with smaller, more spread groups and exploring new depths of the internet.

Remember the early start of the best of these markets the world has seen so far? The well-controlled (thx again, admins .. :) and mostly all honest group of vendors and loyal buyers in the small starting optimistic communities were the best, had the best deals, with knowledge of further improvements and perks were it to last. Risks, losses, some crap.. sure. But we move on, learn, adapt.

The path has been paved out.. let's find a safe place. Again, I would take their escape from this business in this manner very seriously, and not expect any of us to actually know their full reasoning.

Personally I will be keeping a low profile for a good, good while ahead. When I do stick my head up for a Hello, it'll be a gray anonymous random nobody in the crowd, and take max precautions as possible, while taking the experiences from our journey so far to better judge, and maybe help out, people who don't, and likely save alot of money and trouble by knowing this story to motivate and train this caution.

There are great new lands out there, numerous. Endless ways to layer ones security & privacy online, and add another tad to stay safe, and always more to learn. Certainly there are numerous markets on many closed networks already most here are all unaware of. Let's hope we find a good one for shelter while this possible storm lasts... I am not staying outdoors here much longer.

Beware. Agora Team is not leaving the treasure chamber in this way like this, if it was something clear, obvious, or simple, nor something they would think could be evaded somehow.

Beware those who don't.

Just my 2c;)

Bye for now

[–]WhoopieSnacks 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I would say they are still being resilient. They have detected a hazard, patching as needed and will be back. The only way that they wont be back is if the whole TOR network was compromised. Which obviously isnt the case since Agora is the only one that is alerted to it. I may be new to here and TOR but I have gotten the impression that Agora goes down a LOT and are the most trustworthy..... and as you said resillient.

They will be back. fucknose when though.

[–]oksoithought 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I get the feeling a server's been rebooted a few times and they were too scared to keep connecting to manage it. That is what ended up getting Ross, in a library.

Some people know when to call it quits, others usually get caught.

[–]william_junior 2 points3 points  (11 children)

Guys the reason has been stated clearly enough in the OP. Quoting:

"We have recently been discovering suspicious activity around our servers which led us to believe that some of the attacks described in the research could be going on".

[–]xollero 0 points1 point  (10 children)

The approach described in the research is entirely passive so it isn't clear how they would be seeing it as 'suspicious activity' at all.

Also, the countermeasures to the kind of fingerprinting described in the paper seem to be quite straightforward, so it's also not at all clear why they would necessitate "big changes to [their] software stack".

If they are indeed referring strictly to the above-linked research, then I don't understand how this warrants the nuclear option of halting all sales and shutting the site down indefinitely. It's their site, their freedom on the line, and their prerogative to do so, without a doubt.. but it still seems like an overreaction.

[–]william_junior 9 points10 points  (3 children)

Sorry, I always have to laugh when you self appointed specialists talk like it was some ecommerce shop selling gummi bears. Where the other prime target that had just been taken down lately resulted in life sentences.

"Overreaction". Hahahahaha.

[–]incognito1969 0 points1 point  (0 children)

this guy might actually work in this business so he may know what he's talking about. I'd give him the floor mate...unless of course ur more qualified...or have something more intelligent to say then just b4

[–]sillysally11 -1 points0 points  (1 child)

I don't think you understand what he means from a technical point of view.

[–]william_junior 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It's of zero relevance what he means, from a technical point of view.

[–]drugsymcdrugz 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Read the quote again.. It says around our servers.. They may have been tipped off by whoever operates their entry node.

[–][deleted] -1 points0 points  (4 children)

It's their site, their freedom on the line, and their prerogative to do so, without a doubt

Yeah, but you forget it's OUR money that's stored on their site.

[–]opiatethrowy 2 points3 points  (3 children)

And they ARE giving it back. Be grateful they didn't say 'fuck you' and take 30+ million dollars and never worry a day in their lives about anything. Ever.

[–]druggieslut 0 points1 point  (2 children)

Like everyone was expecting them to do, and would be so easy to do with the amount of downtime that agora has had. The Admins are good people

[–]sisygoboom 1 point2 points  (1 child)

also, they may be smart enough to know that if they manage to keep the site up they will have a constant source of income which will serve them all better in the long run.

[–]druggieslut 0 points1 point  (0 children)

True, but running one of the most successful illegal websites of all time, is quite a risky thing to do. If I was the agora admins, and if they've really made as much off fees as I believe they have and haven't had to spend it all on hardware and bandwidth and hitmen (lol), then I would've shut it down ages ago! Statistically speaking, the longer they operate the more likely they are to end up with life sentences like Ross... If they were to shutdown without making any noticable opsec mistakes, they very quickly become untouchable. How are you going to prove that someone ran a darknet market 2 years ago? Heh, heh, heh...

By the way, fun thought: I'd sure as hell leave the US forever if I ran a successful market. Go to a country where the penalties would be more lax...... :)

[–]notonanFBIwatchlist 4 points5 points  (7 children)

Has anyone successfully withdrawn BTC since this message appeared?

[–]SirBarriston 8 points9 points  (0 children)

ive had 2 withdrawals from my wallet since then, but it was not long after they posted that because i was shopping when that popped up and then i stopped shopping and laid face down on the floor silently for a undetermined period of time trying to figure out drugs.

[–]_-________________-_ 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had a previous withdrawal returned to my balance with the customary message.

I tried again an hour ago, nothing yet on blockchain.

[–]sc00b44 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Mine is still in the air

[–]Mighty72 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Any update?

[–]bluecheese89 0 points1 point  (2 children)

No not yet. Shit.

[–]Mighty72 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Any update?

[–]n00bster420 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I got my coins, yours should be with you soon.

[–]druggedupnigga 8 points9 points  (2 children)

at least they gave notice on it. my withdrawl is delayed still.

[–]dnmreviews2015 -1 points0 points  (1 child)

Mine hasn't showed up either. :(

[–]druggedupnigga 1 point2 points  (0 children)

mine showed up finally earlier today

[–]GoingPostalVendor 3 points4 points  (1 child)

We are on 30+ hours with 100's of coins not released yet :(

*edit Have received majority of withdrawals so far :)

[–]Akito8 2 points3 points  (1 child)

This was awful timing.. I had just deposited about 2BTC into my Ag wallet a bit before this announcement, then had my flash drive with all my encrypted passwords break, so I was not able to log in and withdraw my funds. I've since found a backup of my passwords but I have no way of getting the BTC out now that it's offline.. Really hoping they come back soon, Ag was one of my favorites and I'd at least like my BTC back!

[–]NavajoHills 0 points1 point  (0 children)

2 bitcoins down the drain for you.

[–]FuckingWombats 9 points10 points  (1 child)

Any idea on time frame before they go offline?

[–]terrantank8489 2 points3 points  (2 children)

The fact that they are giving us notice gives me hope that they will return. It's going to be a rough couple of weeks though. Hopefull all ends well.

[–]AgoraMarketModerator[S] 2 points3 points  (1 child)

It's going to be a rough couple of weeks though.

If they return, my guess is "months" actually.

Consider their original PGP key expires/expired on November 23rd, 2015 ... yet they decided to generate a new key. Maybe they don't expect to be back before that point, otherwise why generate the new key? They'd come back before November, sign a message with the original key, and at that point, generate a new key.

[–]joeywiseguy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Really hope those funds move soon, needed to purchase supplies for Nocturnal :/

[–]agoramarket1 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Agora will come back! It will become a legend!

[–]NavajoHills 2 points3 points  (0 children)

What now? This is the only market I ever used.

[–]XanaxGodz 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Have faith agora will be back☺

[–]jWiessing 2 points3 points  (1 child)

if someone were to still have money on agora, would this person still have them upon the return of the website?

[–]Andman17 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'd assume and hope so.

[–]qsift2 2 points3 points  (0 children)

we fucking miss you. please come back

[–]mrdumpstercandy 1 point2 points  (1 child)

So my pin is being reset (4days left) any one have any suggestions on how i can get my coin??????

[–]Dnmtossaway1524 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Pray that they wait more than 4 days to shut down totally

[–]jamesmit 1 point2 points  (2 children)

What market is the next best option besides Agora?

[–]TheFriendlyFinn 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Any marketplace that is still up after the Tor vulnerability being exposed, you should not be using it.

[–]chevcheli0s -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Abraxas or alphabay

[–]beherenow23 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Is the forum online? My link might be outdated...

thanks

[–]cloudjacobxenostrife 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If my money is lost to the good guys and not LE, I'm at peace.

[–]NavajoHills 1 point2 points  (0 children)

5 months later LOL, they took the money and ran.

[–]AgoraMarketModerator[S] 2 points3 points  (11 children)

Cool, I formatted it properly. It verifies to their original PGP key...!

Agora's new key (embedded in the message) is importable, but those two extra (?) hyphens at the beginning and end of the "PUBLIC KEY BLOCK" have to be removed.

[–]DontStoneMeBro -4 points-3 points  (10 children)

You should set up a donation address for bitcoins, I'd like to support you guys if possible.

[–]AgoraMarketModerator[S] 4 points5 points  (9 children)

I'm not part of Agora, I'm a random Reddit moderator.

And although a nice gesture, the actual admins aren't hurting for money. heh.

[–]asdqwe1230 7 points8 points  (2 children)

I'm sure you aren't hurting for money, either, with such control of spreading the referral link.. I bet you've a nice house by the beach by now, hahah;) Well played, though. If this is the end of our party for now, thanks to you too. There are so many bad folks out there, you've been herding us well here, too.. Thanks for your efforts, pal. Hope you stay around, do well, not give up hope of the return of our saviors. One day, may be. I'd emphasize they used the word "pause", not "end", "stop" or "termination"..

keep the candle burning, bro. this'll just be some time to recuperate, and see the contrast, and likely even make many long back to what once was, while new people come who unfortunately never learnt the better times of the early days.. similar to history of SR, most sides of it all is steadily declining.

Keep it up. You're a good morale booster, and I'm happy you were the chosen one as leader of our pack here. We'll be awaiting your call.. I'll be back for sure.

Agora is not dead. If nothing else, it lives on in my hopes, for now.. too bad noone (IRL) will even believe me if I'd tell em about the luxuries we've been enabled thru the lifetime of what was SR & Agora; the great firestarters in this revolution that surely turns to be a large part of what will turn the tide in our favor in this inhumane war on drug(users), and eventually leading to a better world, despite the murky waters we have to walk thru at times, surrounded by grim types, and many dangerous people.
Y'all better take into account whatvever suffering, pentalties and whatnot has been inflicted upon us along the road here, has been just another dot in the statistics, and another brick in the puzzle, contributing to and assuring swiftness to while proceeding one step closer ending these stupid laws, which I am certain will be looked back upon as crimes against humanity.

We're outlaws and lowly criminal scum in many peoples eyes today. Considering the path we're on, and the important work being made on this inevitable path of dissolving human-hostile laws, people should consider how much they put into that. I'd rather, though surely - for now - keeping such thoughts to myself, think of communities like this, everyone one that makes it up to what we are.. even the beggars,thieves and scammers; who surely learnt many people some valuable lessons along the road, too.. that a more fitting term for the fallen ones in our lines are imo. closer to 'martyrs'; inevitable sacrifices on this long road, and what enables eventual progress. Don't forget everyone who is now suffering, while we can celebrate another day alive and well in freedom, though as supports are equal in this struggle.

Salute! Thanks again too m8, keep it up. That goes for rest of you, too. Don't give up, don't be discouraged, when shit goes bad; after all,remember, bad times is what'll make us appreciate the good times as much, when they come, and other way around, and this eternal balancing is what keeps us going.. our perpetually changing and subjective perspective of the perception of good and bad.

Let's keep teaching the power-people they can keep shitting on us, but it'll only make it worse for everyone in the long run, and hope we can all learn to accept the differences and find better ways to accept and live with this, for everyones best.

Agora is PAUSED in my book. Not gone. Even in 10 years I'll likely look back at this, if - god forbid - circumstances prevented them from emerging again within that long, and always be having a hope, and keep checking in every now and then... hopeful that one day the lights will be on again.. maybe some rumor spreading, about the new fortress they built where we can meet to trade wares again anonymously.

I have noted down and secured their PGP keys and other historical records of value to me, and possibly aiding in future endeavors, and encourage others of the same.

Those who feel it worthwhile for various reasons, or fear impersonations in some way at a later point, please do leave a key, too, for future verifications.

Who knows how long Reddit will keep this cabin of junkies well-kept and allowed under the radar;)

I am not losing hope. Let's just not forget, nor become naive, and brace ourselves for some more uncertain times ahead, while nervously throwing our money at our new temporary leaders .. who, we can only hope, will behave better than the 90% previous ones who "did a runner".... oh, I miss Agora already.. :/ I will certainly be holding tighter on my cash, and be more stubborn about keeping me BTC until I see wares, nor be trusting any market as much again. I don't think people similar to those of the Agora team is very common..

Thanks all. Community at large, and our sheep herder here who kept us all in line while behaving pretty well, and enduring lots of shit,too, and always staying positive and loyal to Agora as well, keeping spirits high.

Keep it up.

I may go quiet for long, who knows may be this'll be the last u've seen of me. But surely, one of the lurkers detected snoopin around places like here will frequently be me, as I'm sure many others.

Bye for now.. be careful out there everyone. Hope u all have a plesant evening, despite these relatively sad news.

Again. Notice how they call it a "pause".. there's much room for optimism, as we all know the reputation of the people behind that statement.

I hope. Thanks guys, for staying positive and hopeful, and hopefully managing to keep some of the best of these among the community not too far away for the eventual return of our beloved market.

Sorry for the essay..

Stay healthy & outta trouble! Let's remember.. any day now.. any day, it could be. Meanwhile, time to make some new experiences and get some new acquaintances, I'm certain there are many other good out there to find without too much trouble still... =) Keep the morale up. Thanks all! Bye!

[–]runnngman 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Cocaine is a Hellva Drug

[–]calculator174 19 points20 points  (0 children)

wtf

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (3 children)

did you decide to be or were you just assigned to this?

[–]AgoraMarketModerator[S] 2 points3 points  (2 children)

I was made a moderator last summer by another moderator here... I was just a random user with a generic-sounding relevant username :)

Anyway, assuming this whole message isn't some kind of fake-out, the subreddit will remain open for their [hopeful] return.

Tag for /u/xbsd

[–]xbsdModerator 1 point2 points  (0 children)

well keep the sub alive, if you trust your dealer do not forget to FE asap!

[–]OpiLuvr 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Glad your keeping the sub open, we can at least advise people what other markets their favourite vendors are on.

I'll always come back to agora.

[–][deleted]  (1 child)

[removed]

    [–]typhoidz 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    agora literally stops owrking immediately after i log in. didnt even get a chance to withdrawl

    [–]kingarthurthe3rd 0 points1 point  (1 child)

    when did the vendors stop recieving funds?

    [–]The_Drug_StoreVerified Vendor 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    We stopped being able to withdraw from Agora 2 days ago.

    [–]sc00b44 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    If still not having my coin is an update then yes. Still have nothing. I hope this wasn't some crazy agora exit

    [–]shitwad22 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    So how much time does Agora have left?

    [–]_tryptaminded_ 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Are the vendors actually going to be refunded the bond? a friend of mine only just signed up as a vendor 7 days ago....

    Personally, I have been waiting on a resolution for an order I never recieved... Is this likely to be resolved before they shut down?

    Does anyone have any further info, that is more detailed around refunding money & time frames?

    [–]Dercylidas 0 points1 point  (1 child)

    Lot's of people are having trouble withdrawing their funds, I was stricken with poor timing and actually deposited my funds just before the message was posted by the Agora team to withdraw funds. In essence, my funds are trying to swim upstream against a current far too strong for normal delivery times to be expected. But the Blockchain registered the deposit into the wallet more than 80 confirmations. Two days have passed and the site is now offline and my coins have not found their way back into my original wallet (as I used a mixer service prior to depositing directly into Agora wallet) nor have the coins appeared in my Agora wallet. Any hints on this problem? I sent 7.4ish coins two days ago and they never appeared in the Agora wallet. Now the Blockchain has 70+ confirmations of these funds being moved from the Agora wallet address (which I most certainly did not initiate as they never appeared while the site was online) to another address that I am unfamiliar with. I'm super concerned guys! Let me know if you have any helpful hints or tips!

    [–]RoadcutHannah 1 point2 points  (0 children)

    I have the exact same issue - I think we all merely got Exit Scammed.

    [–]Seeder69 0 points1 point  (1 child)

    Jesus, why can't people understand the agora admin are doing this for our benefit and safety. Some people might not believe it but they actually care how things are run on their site. I mean if someone is putting money in your pockets then your going to want to keep that cash flowing as much as possible. They have always prided themselves on safety first, I am a long time agora user unlike all these SR2 and EVO castaways! People just need to let them do their thing and have faith in agora if you don't like it then I'm sure you know what to do?......BEAT IT!! 😄

    [–]throwaaway6666 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Of course they are NOT

    [–]runnngman 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    My funds have been withdrawn

    As someone who lost $1,000's to Evo(may they rot in hell)

    I want to say Good Job and thanks to the Agora admin. Karma can be a Bitch

    [–]n83jast 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Hey. I sent some bitcoins accidentally to my Agora wallet before seeing your message about closing down. But they have not been credited to my wallet. It says there are only 2 confirmations on blockchain after two days? How do I get the coins back? What is your moderator email please? Great service. We will miss you.

    [–]Elitch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    I just logged into the site with no problems. Didn't even know this was happening. Has anyone else managed to log in?

    [–]capitalist4life 0 points1 point  (1 child)

    Is there any way to estimate how long Agora will be offline? Weeks? Months?

    It's easier to be patient if you know how long you have to wait.

    [–]CrucifiedBus 1 point2 points  (0 children)

    Someone said the last PGP key expires sometime in a few months, and if they already gave a new key for after that time they might be closed for several months. But this is just speculation, perhaps just a few week or perhaps they will never open again. But since they gave notice it is not an exit scam, meaning they probably will come back.

    [–]LSDkiller 0 points1 point  (0 children)

    Damn, Agora is dedicated to the game. any other admin would have just taken the coins. maybe they're just extremely greedy.

    [–][deleted]  (1 child)

    [deleted]

      [–]speckledfreckle123 1 point2 points  (0 children)

      No. They gave plenty of notice before they went offline, telling everyone to remove their coin before they went down

      [–]ojjy123 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      Don't know if you guys have already got other sites that you're using but I recently got some great acid from Alphabay. They would be a good mean-time replacement.

      [–]im2high4thisK 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      Fuckkkkkkk, only just hearing about this now. Lost some money :*(

      [–]flash420 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      For those that still need it .. r/joinabraxas

      [–]annualcheck 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      Just found out that Agora is down after being away for a while.... Any idea how to withdraw the BTC as the website is offline for 1 month?

      **Like contacting the admins or whatsoever?

      [–]thegoodbad 0 points1 point  (1 child)

      Agora please come back , the community still waiting for your return :(

      [–]Jriggs81 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      Holy Shit! I have been gone for a while!

      [–]cippo25 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      Is it still down?? My link doesn't work.

      [–]FreezerWeezer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      If I didn't put in the request for a withdrawal at Agora before this close-of-shop, is my Bitcoins lost? Is there any way I can get them back?

      [–]cutie_dash 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      Is there a way to reclaim bitcoins?

      [–]TheRealestNurseJoyVerified Vendor 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      Turns out the research comes to light, and the flaws are fixed within a day by the TOR developers. Doube bluff. Exit. Doom. Gloom. Trust. Ag.

      [–][deleted] -1 points0 points  (2 children)

      This is about their suspicious activity, they don't need to make this about Tor. Its bullshit and the article is click bait. Its the same ol if someone has a ton of nodes they can figure out basic information. But its "brittle" to quote the article. Not that many of you got that far.

      [–]AbogadoHernandez -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

      Fuck you, you incompetent, thieving assholes ; )

      [–]calculator174 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

      Bravo agora.

      [–]BigSmileyFace -1 points0 points  (1 child)

      Hi Agora Admin. Myself as well others are experiencing issues with our withdraws with no TXID assigned to them and it seems like people who dont have the TXID havent got their coins yet. Are they still coming or should we freak out?

      [–]alfabi 0 points1 point  (0 children)

      Hes not associated with agora market stuff, just a reddit moderator.

      [–]TossMeInTheTrash420 -2 points-1 points  (1 child)

      Its amazing to see how many of you claim to know so much about TOR, networking protocols and server security.. but I got the feeling lot of you really dont see the big fucking picture in the scheme of "cyber security" let them do their jobs and be thankful your junkie asses can get high an not have to worry about gettin arrested or shot coppin IRL. If got that big a problem with Ag go to some other shitty market an take your chances there... Less idiots fucking things up for everyone else here.

      [–]This_sucks11 -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

      So if agora goes offline how are we gonna know its online? Think ol agora_one will pop on Reddit or maybe run a quick commercial on late night TV?

      [–]AbogadoHernandez -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

      Fuck you, bullshit excuse.

      reddit gold

      In Summation

      Want to say thanks to %(recipient)s for this comment? Give them a month of reddit gold.

      By purchasing Reddit Gold, you agree to the Reddit User Agreement.

      • make my gift anonymous
      • include a message

      Please select a payment method.

      Give gold often? Consider buying creddits to use, they're 40% cheaper if purchased in a set of 12.

      Would you like to learn more about giving gold?

      reddit gold

      In Summation

      Want to say thanks to %(recipient)s for this submission? Give them a month of reddit gold.

      By purchasing Reddit Gold, you agree to the Reddit User Agreement.

      • make my gift anonymous
      • include a message

      Please select a payment method.

      Give gold often? Consider buying creddits to use, they're 40% cheaper if purchased in a set of 12.

      Would you like to learn more about giving gold?