As trust in public institutions declines, false flag conspiracy theories are gaining traction. In a recent Wired article, covering ISD’s Dispatch on the topic, Digital Research Analyst Valeria de la Fuente spoke about the rapid and unprecedented growth of these narratives.

“Some of these accounts were not that big, and yet they were garnering millions of views in a matter of hours,” Valeria said. “It’s just becoming this common response to these high-profile crises when there’s chaos and confusion and uncertainty and, in many cases, it doesn’t align with their agenda.”

According to Valeria, one of the most concerning aspects of this trend is how false flag conspiracy theories downplay acts of violence and, in doing so, diminish the suffering of real victims.

The full article is available on Wired, and is also available in Spanish.

ISD’s Dispatch on the rise of false flag conspiracy theories is available on our website and in Spanish on Factchequeado.