Irish police confirm they are not actively monitoring the dark web, saying investigations occur only when evidence arises.
Ireland’s national police force, An Garda Síochána, has confirmed that it does not actively monitor the dark web as part of its regular law enforcement operations, a senior officer told a parliamentary committee this week.
Appearing before the Oireachtas Committee on Artificial Intelligence, Assistant Commissioner Angela Willis was asked whether Gardaí routinely monitor dark web activity given concerns about illegal material, including child sexual exploitation content. She responded that Gardaí are not actively monitoring the dark web.
Willis clarified that detectives will investigate dark web content if evidence comes to light or if there is a specific reason to believe criminal material is present, but broad, ongoing surveillance of hidden internet spaces is not currently conducted due to resource and capacity limitations.
The assistant commissioner also noted that while the organisation has the technical expertise to investigate dark web cases, they have not yet adopted specialised tools or continuous monitoring systems, and capacity constraints limit how much proactive dark web activity can be pursued.
Willis suggested that artificial intelligence tools could offer useful opportunities to assist in examining illicit online content if such technologies were assessed and deployed in the future.
The remarks came amid wider discussions about how law enforcement handles emerging challenges in online crime and harmful content, including material generated or shared via AI platforms and encrypted communications.
Reports are sourced from official documents, law-enforcement updates, and credible investigations.
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