Random Darknet Shopper has been returned to the art group that created it.

1. AUTHORITIES RETURNED THE "RANDOM
DARKNET SHOPPER"

2. The laptop which was dubbed the “Random Darknet Shopper”, that was used to run a
program which randomly bought items off the Agora URL, has ultimately been returned to
its creators, a Swiss art group.
The laptop was seized by the police in January. It was part of an exhibit, which also
included other items. These other items were also returned to the Swiss group, except
the Ecstasy pills which were destroyed.

3. The Swiss art group, Mediengruppe Bitnik, tweeted about the condition of the laptop on
15th April 2015 saying that, the bot was fine and it even had some bitcoins left.
All charges were dropped by the St. Gallen’s public prosecutor in Switzerland. This is
because the ethical questions raised by the shopper justified the exhibition.

4. The laptop was designed as a piece of “live” art. It was given bitcoins worth $100 weekly.
It would randomly choose an item on the Agora URL and send it to St. Gallen’s art
gallery where it was on display. The darknet shopper shopped for items on the Agora
URL for four months.
The darknet shopper purchased items like a fake sprite “stash can”, a Hungarian
passport scan, knockoff Nikes, ecstasy pills, fake diesel jeans, a “decoy letter” and a
baseball cap which had a hidden camera from the Agora URL.

5. To access the Agora Market paste this address into your Tor Browser
http://agorahooawayyfoe.onion.
The art exhibit had been on display for 3 months before the entire installation was seized
by local Swiss authorities after the display closed on 11th January 2015.

6. The art group argues that it is the role of art to mirror society’s faults. They question what
would happen to society if robots acted autonomously, breaking the law. They however
see the confiscation of the items of the exhibit as an inhibition of the freedom of art. The
art group was grateful to St. Gallen for the support that they showed.
Click here to read more about Agora URL.