The shift is fueled by a belief among some of the conspiracy's more militant followers that they "can no longer 'trust the plan" set forth by its mysterious standard-bearer, known simply as "Q," according to an unclassified FBI threat assessment. Keep Reading
While Q – an anonymous message board user at the heart of the theory – has been posting since late 2017, the movement grew in popularity over the course of the pandemic lockdowns of 2020. Keep Reading
QAnon has not shown any concrete signs of slowing down and continues to engage with new lines of conspiracy thinking to attract followers. Keep Reading
The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the considerable fallout that a public health emergency can have on wide-ranging areas from nation-state conflict to migration to conspiracy theories that can potentially escalate to extremist violence, intelligence agencies said. Keep Reading
"A lot of these violent extremism threats don't fit into nice, neat ideological buckets," FBI director warns. Keep Reading
In light of the recent Capitol Hill riots, there has been a growing realization that domestic terrorism is now a greater threat to the homeland than internationally linked militant jihadist threats from groups like ISIS, al Qaeda, al Shabaab, etc. Keep Reading
The success of German democracy today indicates Germany’s ability to overcome its previous failure and offers lessons for the United States as well as other countries seeking to counter extreme ideologies. Keep Reading
"Some DVEs motivated by the QAnon conspiracy theory believe that the previous president will be inaugurated on 4 March or will return to power on 20 May with the help of the U.S. military," say FBI and DHS. Keep Reading
After rising to the fore in the U.S. during the most fraught presidential campaign the country has seen for decades, the QAnon phenomenon has emerged in France – prompting President Emmanuel Macron’s government to order a multiagency inquiry on conspiracist movements. Keep Reading
QAnon is not a static conspiracy theory. Since it first emerged in 2017, it has continuously evolved, focusing on different key topics and adopting elements of other conspiracy theories. Keep Reading
The mishmash of extremists at the Capitol and chatter give indications about threat patterns in the year ahead. Keep Reading
2020 emphasized the importance of staying nimble as multiple threats simultaneously unfold. Keep Reading
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to drastic changes to our lives and great uncertainty with regard to healthcare, social cohesion and the economy. In parallel, major protests against the policies implemented by governments to prevent the spread of the virus have erupted. Keep Reading
Downplaying the phenomenon or misrepresenting what drives it, as so many previous administrations have done, will only make it worse. Keep Reading
The Bureau usually has about 1,000 domestic terrorism investigations open each year, but "it's higher than that this year." Keep Reading
A popular website for posts about the conspiracy group QAnon abruptly shut down after a fact-checking group identified the developer as a New Jersey man. Keep Reading
There are some familiar faces as well as new threats keeping counter-extremism on its toes. Keep Reading
"We have seen growing movements that, while not directly organizing violence, have celebrated violent acts, shown that they have weapons and suggest they will use them, or have individual followers with patterns of violent behavior." Keep Reading
As Facebook continues to grapple with hate speech and violent extremism across the platform, QAnon conspiracy theorists are using public and private Facebook pages and groups to spread disinformation, racism, and thinly veiled incitement to violence. Keep Reading
QAnon is a wide-ranging, unfounded conspiracy theory that a "deep state" network of powerful government, business and media figures are waging a secret war against Donald Trump. Keep Reading