The authors analyze how illicit markets come together, issues of destabilization and international security, the effect of legitimate enterprises crowded out of developing countries, and ultimately, illicit markets' cost to human life.

1. Introduction.- 2. Illicit Markets: A Short Historical Summary.- 3. Illicit Superstructures: Banking, Middlemen, and Transport.- 4. Organized Crime and Drug Trafficking in the Americas: Trends and Challenges.- 5. General Trends in Drug Trafficking and Organized Crime on a Global Scale.- 6. Human and Organ Trafficking.- 7. Arms Trafficking: Small Arms and WMDs.- 8. Illicit Markets and the Internet Age.- 9. Conclusion.

This book explains the existence of illicit markets throughout human history and provides recommendations to governments. Organized criminal networks increased in strength after the enforcement of prohibition, eventually challenging the authority of the state and its institutions through corruption and violence. Criminal networks now organize under cyber-infrastructure, what we call the Deep or Dark Web. The authors analyze how illicit markets come together, issues of destabilization and international security, the effect of legitimate enterprises crowded out of developing countries, and ultimately, illicit markets' cost to human life. 
Hanna Samir Kassab is Visiting Assistant Professor at Northern Michigan University, USA.
Jonathan D. Rosen is Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice at Holy Family University, USA.

“This book is a timely and valuable primer for anyone interested in the dark side of globalization. It synthesizes and builds on the literature on transnational crime, ranging from the trafficking of drugs and arms to the black market for human organs, and highlights the growing linkages to security issues in the 21st century.”(Peter Andreas, Brown University, USA, and author of Smuggler Nation: How Illicit Trade Made America)

“This is a provocative and wide-ranging treatise on illicit markets and public policy. By focusing on the nature of ‘illicitness’ rather than its specific manifestation the authors demonstrate the weakness of legalizing particular product lines as a policy response. Their favored solution—minimize demand through economic and human development—should stimulate further research into the characteristics of demand for illicit goods and services.” (David R. Mares, Distinguished Professor, University of California, San Diego, USA)

“The authors of this important study about an increasingly crucial issue have both individually and together established themselves as respected experts on the dark side of globalization, especially in Latin America—insurrection and other forms of armed conflict, corruption, drug smuggling and the various means used to ‘launder’ ill-gotten gains. In their newest collaborative study they expand their focus beyond the Americas and trace the emergence of the illicit markets that facilitate the flourishing of global corruption. The result is a comprehensive introduction to global organized criminal violence from the poppy fields and human trafficking to the shell companies and even the boardrooms of global corporations that are crucial to ‘legitimizing’ the vast array of illicit activities that comprise the dark side of the global economy and lead to the weakening of state structures and the deepening of social injustice.” (Roger E. Kanet, University of Miami, USA)

Provides a comprehensive study of illicit markets in the contexts of international security and economic development Examines both historical attempts at laws of prohibition and current attempts in the twenty-first century, particularly in regards to reliance on the Internet Underscores the significance of illicit markets in regards to corruption, injustice, and the formulation of weak and fragile states

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