## 5 Discussion and Implications
### Future Direction towards User Studies  
In the previous subsections, we note the possible harmful effect on the users due to the Dark Net; hence, our primary focus in this study is to emphasize the user component of Dark Net research. However, from our analysis, we discover a significantly smaller number of user studies yielding only \(n=9\) papers on the given topic of research [193, 194, 6, 205, 215, 216, 217, 6, 218, 219, 206, 217]. This clearly shows a research gap where the perceptions and experience of users' interactions within the Dark Net are concerned. This is even more concerning as prior studies have shown that several non-experts in technology use Dark Net for various interactions.  
Additionally, policing agencies from different countries also monitor the interactions and transactions on the Dark Net. In such a scenario, users with little technical expertise and little or no data protection surfing the Dark Net websites present a troubling picture. Therefore, user studies provide a unique perspective on a situation that can provide valuable insight into users' experience navigating these networks. In the case of the Dark Net, user perception and experience play an even vital role because the Dark Net is built by the volunteer users base that facilitates the entire Dark Net network architecture and runs relays that ensure the anonymization of these users. Dark Net is used for multiple purposes, from whistleblowing [6] to sharing information to conducting illegal transactions and discussing real-world terrorist attack [220, 221]. In this way, Dark Net provides a landscape that can be very useful and detrimental to modern democracy [222].  
User experience and user-focus studies can help researchers evaluate emerging trends, technology evolution, and real-world impacts. It can also inform legal authorities to create legal reforms and policing measures and track criminal activities. However, even for the nine studies that conducted any user-focused experiments, two of them were generic. For example, instead of focusing on the Dark Net, they focus primarily on Tor, through which users access Dark Net. In addition, three of the user studies that managed to do an interview and participants' observations had less than 20 participants, as explained earlier. Moreover, the studied participants were primarily non-experts; thus, all the technical solutions the researchers are working on might not work for them unless user input is considered. As we see from prior studies in different domains, usability [223, 224, 225] and accessibility [226, 227] play a vital role when it comes to the adoption of technologies. Especially for Dark Net, research by [PERSON] et al. has shown fatal consequences of not looking into the user side [201].  
We understand that participant recruitment can be a significant challenge for user-focused experiments, especially when it comes to sensitive technologies such as Dark Net. However, none of the papers discuss this constraint or emphasize how to address this issue. With over two million active users of the Dark Net and the sheer scale of illegal activities that can benefit from the under-laying network, it is essential to address this. Moreover, in lieu of illegal activities, it is also imperative to protect those whose usage is dependent on the anonymity of the network and help protect their identity.