When your credit card details are stolen , where do they end up ? One data company attempted to find out by diving into the Dark Web - a murky online world where stolen information is often offered up for sale . The unique experiment tracked stolen data from California as it travelled the globe , and found that it landed in five different continents and 22 countries within just two weeks . Scroll down for video . The unique experiment tracked stolen data as it travelled the globe , and found that it landed in five different continents and 22 countries within just two weeks . Overall , the data was viewed more than 1,000 times and downloaded 47 times ; some activity had connections to crime syndicates in Nigeria and Russia . 'When the story first broke about the Morgan Stanley breach , it got us thinking , ' security research firm Bitglass wrote on their blog . 'We all hear about these massive breaches that take place , Target , Home Depot , Sony , Anthem , Premera , but what actually happens to the data after it is stolen ? ' Bitglass created an excel spreadsheet of 1,568 fake employee credentials , and then placed it on anonymous file sharing sites within the Dark Web , using a Tor browser as an entry point . The company then tracked the data as it travelled to various sinister locations around the world , and as it was shared amongst cyber-crime syndicates overseas . Bitglass created an excel spreadsheet of 1,568 fake employee credentials , and then placed it on anonymous file sharing sites within the Dark Web , using a Tor browser as an entry point . By day 12 , the file had received over 1,080 clicks had spread to 22 countries on five continents . The stolen data found its way on the Dark Web to five continents - North America , Asia , Europe , Africa and South America . It was accessed from 22 countries - United States , Brazil , Belgium , Nigeria , Hong Kong , Spain , Germany , the United Kingdom , France , Sweden , Finland , the Maldives , New Zealand , Canada , Norway , the Russian Federation , the Netherlands , the Czech Republic , Denmark , Italy , Turkey and Luxembourg . Overall , the data was viewed more than 1,000 times and downloaded 47 times ; some activity had connections to crime syndicates in Nigeria and Russia . Traffic patterns suggest the fake data was shared among members of the syndicates to vet its validity and subsequently shared elsewhere on the Dark Web , beyond the original drop sites . ' [ The ] file travels through Bitglass proxy when downloaded from a cloud or on-premises application , ' the company explained . When this occurs , the document is automatically embedded with an invisible watermark . Every time the document was opened , a 'ping ' was sent to the Bitglass portal displaying : user name , file name , geographic location , IP address and device type . Even if a watermarked document was copied and pasted elsewhere , or mutilated in some way , the watermarks still persisted . Within only a few days , the fake credentials had been downloaded in over five countries , three continents and was viewed over 200 times . By day 12 , the file had received over 1,080 clicks had spread to 22 countries on five continents . 'By the end of the experiment the fake document of employee data had made its way to North America , South America , Asia , Europe , and Africa , ' the company said in their report . 'Countries frequently associated with cyber-criminal activity , including Russia , China and Brazil , were the most common access points for the identity data . Every time the document was opened , a 'ping ' was sent to the Bitglass portal displaying : user name , file name , geographic location , IP address and device type . Pictured are the regions that accessed the data by day 17 . Traffic patterns suggest the fake data was shared among members of the syndicates to vet its validity and subsequently shared elsewhere on the Dark Web , beyond the original drop sites . Overall , the data was viewed more than 1,000 times and downloaded 47 times ; some activity had connections to crime syndicates in Nigeria and Russia . Traffic patterns suggest the fake data was shared among members of the syndicates to vet its validity and subsequently shared elsewhere on the Dark Web , beyond the original drop sites . Last year , 783 data breaches were reported in the US , which represents a 27.5 percent spike over the previous year . Often it can take months , and sometimes years , for a company to detect a security problem . By this time , the data is likely to have already travelled around the world . Last year , 783 data breaches were reported in the US , which represents a 27.5 percent spike over the previous year.Often it can take months , and sometimes years , for a company to detect a security problem . By this time , the data is likely to have already travelled around the world .
Bitglass created 1,568 fake details and released them on the Dark Web . Data landed in five different continents and 22 countries within two weeks . Overall , data was viewed more than 1,000 times and downloaded 47 times . Some activity had connections to crime syndicates in Nigeria and Russia .