This problem is likely to increase, as developments in decentralised software will allow marketplaces to exist without residing on any individual server. This is a potential 'dark cloud' on the horizon for investigations and prosecutions in what is already a challenging judicial landscape.
This quote from the recent Drugs and the darknet report was one reason that motivated me to write the new OpenBazaar guide for the DNM bible.
While others occasionally posted some OB setup guides they usually only contained the bare necessities, involved copying long and obscure commands as well as these guides quickly becoming outdated. So I took some hours time and wrote up an extensive guide on how to set up OB on Whonix securely.
We superlist mods have also decided that we will put up OB vendor store links on the vendor-shop list. If you have one set up, please read the instructions at the top of the list and then message us. However to prevent scammers from quickly setting up an OB store and then getting a spot on the vendor-shop list, brand new vendors will not be able to get on the list.
The DNM bible also already offers a Whonix guide which covers the complete secure installation of it and tells you what pitfalls to avoid. However since not everybody has the latest and most powerful computers I now also wrote up a chapter with performance tips for Whonix.
Personally I think that de-centralized markets hold a lot of potential that should not go unused in the DNM community. We already have many tools that only require a few clicks by us (OB, Monero) but create immense obstacles for law enforcement.
Just imagine how much harder it would be to make any large-scale busts like the AlphaBay-Hansa one if the majority of DNM users would use OB in combination with Monero. It would drastically change the game in our favour for a good amount of time.
Another topic that I would like to briefly talk about is adopting new cryptocurrencies on DNMs. If we go through the hassle of searching and adopting new ones, they should offer significant benefits compared to bitcoin. That means a large market capitalization or a nice looking logo should not be the reasons for implementing and adopting it.
As DNM users we need security and privacy. Switching to another cryptocurrency which offers none of that will not help solving the always prevalent issue of law enforcement. Instead we would be stuck with a new coin that is just as trace-able as bitcoin and maybe some faster transaction times.
Therefore I would like to remind you that one should not only look for faster transaction confirmation times but also especially focus on the privacy aspects of other cryptocurrencies.
Edit: if someone wants to help writing a Monero guide for Tails please message me.
Very well put. I also agree with your sentiment that we shouldn't just be looking for cheaper, faster Alt coins. But improving the landscape as a whole with improved privacy in mind. The implementation of multisig into Monero, along with recent discovered methods of making it work with Tails, and OpenBazaar2.0 gives me hope that a new wave of security-minded shops are around the corner.