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Dublin, Aug. 11, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Human and Machine Trust/Threat Detection and Damage Mitigation Market by Technology, Solution, Deployment Model, Use Case, Application, Sector (Consumer, Enterprise, Industrial, Government), Industry Vertical, and Region 2020 - 2025" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

This research evaluates the machine trust market. This includes human-machine threat detection and damage mitigation systems in both human-machine and machine-machine security frameworks. The report assesses the market from both technology and solution perspective and associated services. The report also evaluates unique approaches across industry verticals as well as the government sector with forecasts from 2020 to 2025.

Threat detection and damage mitigation (TDDM) refers to those processes, procedures, tools that provide the ability of an organization to accurately identify potential threats to networks, systems, applications and/or other assets with emphasis upon the ability to pre-emptively and proactively respond to security events and/or mitigate damage. More advanced TDDM solutions look beyond human-led threat detection and mitigation to autonomous M2M solutions. Regardless of whether threats originate from human beings or autonomous computer programs, the new vision of TDDM is to create a human-machine threat detection framework in which network operators and systems administrators may choose their level of interaction and control.

Human-machine threat detection systems leverage various techniques such as video surveillance, cloud-controlled cyber-bots, and physical robots, artificial intelligence, biometric security systems, and IoT solutions. Various combinations of automation techniques and technologies are leveraged in orchestration with human-controlled threat detection solutions. Solutions will have varying levels of autonomy, including fully autonomous, remote-controlled (such as via handheld devices), and hybrid variants.

Recent concerns and threats stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic have added a new dimension of safety and security to protect human lives. The new expectation will have a longer-term impact of routine behavior and processes. It has now become very important across the world to control the spread of the COVID-19 virus and protect human lives. In addition to physical threats associated with pandemics, bad actors also seize the opportunity to engage in various threats against cyber infrastructure. For example, we see aviation, transportation, and public safety industries relying upon human-machine TDDM solutions on an increasingly larger scale to restore human confidence over security systems as part of both industry and government initiatives.

Based on our analysis, we see certain vendors as key to the ecosystem including Check Point, Cisco, Fidelis, FireEye, Fortinet, McAfee, Palo Alto Networks, Symantec, Trend Micro, etc. offer integrated architecture for threat detection and mitigation solutions on all of the options. Companies like IBM QRadar, Splunk, Chronicle Security Backstory, Microsoft Azure Sentinel, etc. provide security analytics solutions.

Target Audience:

Select Report Findings:

Key Topics Covered:

1.0 Executive Summary

2.0 Introduction

3.0 Technology and Application Analysis3.1 Human to Machine Interaction Technology and products3.1.1 Device Based Intrusion Detection System3.1.1.1 Memory Scanning System3.1.1.2 Network Intrusion Detection System3.1.1.3 Host-based Intrusion Detection System3.1.1.4 Perimeter Intrusion Detection System3.1.2 Screening and Management Platform3.1.2.1 People and Component Screening3.1.2.2 Baggage Screening3.1.3 Security and Surveillance Robots3.1.4 Disinfection and Disease Protection System3.1.4.1 Ultraviolet Light-Based Disinfection System3.1.4.2 Disinfection Chamber /Sanitizing Tunnels3.1.4.3 Tray Disinfection System3.1.4.4 Airborne Disease Protection System3.1.5 Handheld and Photosensitive Detection Device3.2 Human to Machine Interaction Application Analysis3.2.1 Explosive Detection3.2.2 Radiological and Nuclear Detection3.2.3 Chemical and Biological Detection3.2.4 Narcotics Detection3.2.5 Network Intrusion Detection3.2.6 Disease Control and Management3.2.7 People and Component Detection3.2.8 Fire detection3.3 Machine to Machine Interaction Technology and Products3.3.1 Cloud Access and Security Brokers (CASB)3.3.2 Endpoint Detection and Response Systems3.3.3 Intrusion Detection Systems3.3.4 Network Firewalls3.3.5 Malware Sandboxing3.3.6 Honeypots3.3.7 Security Information and Event Management System3.3.8 Threat Intelligence Platforms3.3.9 Use and Entity Behaviour Analytics3.4 Machine to Machine Interaction Application Analysis3.4.1 Unauthorized Identity and Access Detection3.4.2 Suspicious Behaviour Detection3.4.3 Malicious Activity Detection3.4.4 Enterprise Threat Detection3.4.5 Connected Threat and Attacks Detection3.4.6 Known Threat Intelligence Feeds3.4.7 Malware Code Detection3.4.8 RansomWare Detection3.5 Human-Machine Threat Detection Use Case Analysis3.5.1 Public Infrastructure Deployment3.5.2 Commercial Space Deployment3.5.3 Institutional Deployment3.5.4 Industrial Deployment3.6 Human-Machine Threat Detection across Industry Vertical3.6.1 Consumer Sector3.6.2 Enterprise Sector3.6.3 Industrial Sector3.6.4 Government Sector3.7 Infrastructure and People Monitoring3.8 Advanced Threat Monitoring and Response3.9 Cloud vs. On-Premise Deployment3.10 AI and Machine Learning Role3.11 Ethical AI3.12 Threat Visualization and Analytics3.13 Threats to IoT, Edge Computing, and 5G

4.0 Company Analysis4.1 3D Robotics4.2 Airbus4.3 Alert Logic4.4 Analogic Corporation4.5 Armor Defense4.6 AT&T Cybersecurity4.7 Axis Communication AB4.8 Barracuda Networks4.9 Blighter Surveillance Systems4.10 Broadcom (Blue Coat Systems)4.11 Boeing4.12 Chemimage Corporation4.13 Chemring Group4.14 Cisco Systems4.15 Darktrace4.16 Dell4.17 Drone Shield4.18 Elbit Systems4.19 Exabeam4.20 FireEye4.21 Flir Systems4.22 Forcepoint4.23 Fortinet4.24 Group IB4.25 General Electric (GE)4.26 Google4.27 Huawei Technologies4.28 IBM4.29 Intel4.30 Lockheed Martin Corporation4.31 McAfee4.32 Mirion Technologies4.33 Medtronic4.34 Microsoft Corporation4.35 Northrop Grumman4.36 Palo Alto Networks4.37 RAE Systems (Honeywell)4.38 Rapid74.39 Rapiscan Systems4.40 Raytheon Technologies4.41 Safran4.42 Smiths Detection Group4.43 Thales Group4.44 Trend Micro4.45 Collins Aerospace4.46 WatchGuard

5.0 Market Analysis and Forecast 2020 - 20255.1 Global Human Machine Threat Detection Market 2020 - 20255.2 Global Human Machine Threat Detection Market by Segment 2020 - 20255.3 Human to Machine Interaction Market 2020 - 20255.3.1 Global Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Technology5.3.2 Global Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Solution5.3.2.1 Global Intrusion Detection Device Market by Product and System5.3.2.2 Global Screening and Management Machine Market by Product and System5.3.2.3 Global Security and Surveillance Robots Market by Product and System5.3.2.4 Global Disinfection and Disease Protection System Market by Product and System5.3.2.5 Global Handheld and Photosensitive Detection Device Market by Product and System5.3.2.6 Global Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Service5.3.3 Global Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Deployment Model5.3.4 Global Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Use Case5.3.5 Global Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Application5.3.6 Global Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Sector5.3.7 Global Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Industry Vertical5.3.8 Global Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Region5.3.8.1 North America Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.3.8.2 Europe Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.3.8.3 APAC Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.3.8.3.1 SEA Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.3.8.4 Latin America Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.3.8.5 MEA Human to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.4 Machine to Machine Interaction Market 2020 - 20255.4.1 Global Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Technology5.4.2 Global Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Solution5.4.2.1 Global Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Product and System5.4.2.2 Global Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Service5.4.3 Global Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Deployment Model5.4.4 Global Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Use Case5.4.5 Global Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Application5.4.6 Global Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Sector5.4.7 Global Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Industry Vertical5.4.8 Global Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Region5.4.8.1 North America Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.4.8.2 Europe Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.4.8.3 APAC Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.4.8.3.1 SEA Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.4.8.4 Latin America Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country5.4.8.5 MEA Machine to Machine Interaction Market for Threat Detection by Country

6.0 Conclusions and Recommendations6.1 Advertisers and Media Companies6.2 Artificial Intelligence Providers6.3 Automotive Companies6.4 Broadband Infrastructure Providers6.5 Communication Service Providers6.6 Computing Companies6.7 Data Analytics Providers6.8 Immersive Technology (AR, VR, and MR) Providers6.9 Networking Equipment Providers6.10 Networking Security Providers6.11 Semiconductor Companies6.12 IoT Suppliers and Service Providers6.13 Software Providers6.14 Healthcare Service Providers6.15 Unmanned System Providers6.16 Public Safety Solution Providers6.17 Smart City System Integrators6.18 Social Media Companies6.19 Workplace Solution Providers6.20 Enterprise and Government

Companies Mentioned

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/pnr6sz

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Insights on the Human and Machine Trust/Threat Detection and Damage Mitigation Global Market to 2025 - Featuring 3D Robotics, Airbus & Alert Logic...

When he found himself at the tail-end of a National Day Parade (NDP) mobile column in Woodlands Avenue 3 on Sunday, Foodpanda delivery rider Abdul Rahman waved at onlookers and received loud cheers in return.

What many may not know is that it was one of the best birthday gifts he ever received, the 29-year-old told The Straits Times yesterday.

His birthday was last Saturday, a day he spent working as usual before his wife surprised him with a cake when he returned home for lunch at 1pm.

"We had a quick celebration and ate lunch together, and I was off to work again at 3pm."

Mr Rahman, who has two sons aged two and four, has been a delivery rider for about a year.

He now works up to nine hours a day, six days a week, to provide for his family who live in a three-room Housing Board flat in Woodlands.

His wife, 31, works in the engineering sector.

"Food delivery is not an easy job. We have to travel through rain and heat, and deal with traffic also. I would say it is a high-risk occupation.

"Delivery riders are part of the front liners, and deserve to be appreciated. I'm very happy to see all the nice comments online."

Many on YouTube had described him as a hero. One even wrote: "Without unsung heroes like him, I would have starved during the circuit breaker period."

A ban on dining-in during the circuit breaker from April 7 saw demand for food deliveries increase by about 20 to 30 per cent.

On Sunday, Mr Rahman found himself at the tail-end of the northern route contingent at around noon, behind five mobile column motorbikes, when he was on his way to pick up an order from a nearby Esso petrol station.

The roads covered by the five mobile columns were closed on a rolling basis and reopened to traffic once the column passed. Motorists were advised to avoid the routes until the end of the segment at 1.20pm.

"The other vehicles took different routes to avoid the mobile column. But passing through Woodlands Avenue 3 was the only way for me to get to Esso.

"So I just proceeded on the same route as the contingent," he said.

He followed the contingent for about 10 minutes, waving to the crowd enthusiastically, a spontaneous decision propelled by his easygoing nature.

"Some of the onlookers yelled 'Foodpanda!'. It was a very funny moment," said Mr Rahman, who was caught in a 25-second video which has been shared widely.

His four-year-old saw the video and was beaming with pride when he returned home at 8pm.

"He told our neighbours: 'My daddy is in the National Day Parade.'"

It was not his first time, he noted. In 2011, he was part of the police contingent when he was doing his full-time national service.

On Sunday, the northern route of the mobile column - comprising about a dozen vehicles from the Singapore Police Force, Singapore Armed Forces and Singapore Civil Defence Force - travelled from Khatib to Sembawang.

Front liners and essential workers from sectors such as healthcare and social services were aboard some of the vehicles, and residents greeted them with cheery waves.

Then came Mr Rahman, whose role in the pandemic may have been dwarfed by the others, but who was surprised by the enthusiastic cheers.

But heroes, as those who watched the video and left their comments noted, come in all shapes and sizes. On National Day, a Foodpanda delivery rider showed Singaporeans that everyone counts.

More:
Delivery rider in NDP mobile column becomes social media hit - The Straits Times

Today, at a Special Meeting of Council, Members of Council passed a resolution to permit Hindu Temples located in Mississauga to broadcast religious hymns once per day at 7 p.m. for a maximum of five minutes between the period of August 11 and September 1, 2020. Council granted an exemption from the Noise Control By-law for evening Hymns during Pandemic.

The request from Hindu Forum Canada was reviewed and supported by the Citys Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee at a meeting on August 6,2020.

The exemption is provided for this year only due to the pandemic, until the newly drafted Noise By-Laws recently presented by staff can be vetted with the residents of Mississauga through public consultation meetings held by staff and the local Councillor in each Ward.

Broadcasting audible expressions of faith will be referred to Councils Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee (DIAC) to allow for discussion, public engagement, and input into the noise by-law amendments.

Media Contact:

Catherine MonastSenior Advisor Media and Public InformationCity of Mississauga905-615-3200, ext. 5046catherine.monast@mississauga.caTTY:905-896-5151

More:
COVID-19 Response Continues: Exemption granted from Noise Control By-law for evening Hymns during Pandemic - City of Mississauga

New Delhi | Published: August 10, 2020 10:23:49 pm

Written by Mohammad Irshad

Communication and interaction are the glue that allows every community to evolve, organise and grow together. The rise of the virtual world provides subaltern and voiceless people unprecedented opportunities to assert themselves and experience a sense of belongingness. At the same time, it contests the interests of powerful communities and domination at the social-physical level. Online communities are, geographically, much wider and more heterogeneous than physical communities. In the past, many communities in India were not allowed to participate in public discourses, organise themselves and advance their thoughts and ideas. Their concerns, ideas, experiences, ambitions and demands largely went unheard.

Digital social media platforms have enabled them to offer democratic ideas to the world, which rejects prevailing hegemonic norms. Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, WhatsApp and several other platforms have this enabling characteristic, while honouring individual dignity and respect.

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have substantially empowered Dalits, Adivasis, women, economically weaker sections and minorities, despite the uneasiness of the ruling dispensation. ICTs have provided them access to the required information without much obstruction information and knowledge that is otherwise overlooked by the dominant media.

Theorist Frank Webster concludes that the new information society is more theoretical in nature. People strive to find the conceptual basis for their views, which in turn affects the mainstream narrative, making the media as a whole more democratic and egalitarian.

Today, creating content needs less investment than before. It is more often soft-skill driven. It is also not purely social-capital-caste driven. With the assistance of technology, anyone can create competent, authentic, effective and fresh online content.

With the increasing presence of subalterns and their competence to theorise their experiences (for example, at the Dalit Film Festival in Kirori Mal College, Delhi University, last year), the ability to access information is widening. There is a rise of Dalit intelligentsia and an alternative mass media of and for subalterns.

According to the American information studies scholar, Nicole A. Cooke, information creation and consumption will always be a significant part of our lives and society. Unlike in the earlier agricultural and industrial societies, in the information society, subalterns are attempting to generate a fresh epistemological terrain for themselves in India.

Information society is governed by knowledge workers, who could be from diverse social groups and identities. Meanwhile, the question remains: Why could agricultural society not deliver justice to subalterns in India? Because the entire agricultural economy was under the control of landowners, who belong to the upper castes. Similarly, capital is still largely controlled by upper castes.

The digital age has provided opportunities for anyone to become a knowledge owner and producer instead of remaining a mere spectator and consumer of manufactured knowledge that furthers the interests of certain dominant castes. The reach of mobile technology and the internet has facilitated this, though legitimate concerns about the digital divide persist and discrimination in this respect should not be overlooked.

(The writer is assistant professor, Department of Philosophy, Indraprastha College for Women, Delhi University)

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Q Anon adherents have become more visible and outspoken across Florida over the past few years. Now the plethora of Q candidates have mainstreamed the fringe beliefs.

Reba Sherrill of Palm Beach wants to represent Florida in Congress.

The Republican candidate for the District 21 seat presently held by Democrat Lois Frankel aid she supports term limits and calls for health care plans to include dental and eye coverage.

Pretty standard campaign stances for Republican candidates. Then, there are Sherrills more atypical beliefs.

Sherrill also believes that "pedivores" or pedophile cannibals eat babies to get high. And that children as young as six are taught about having sex with animals.

"There are so many things that are actually being taught to our children in the school system, I would categorize it as pure evil," she said on a YouTube video. "They start educating children in kindergarten about bestiality, anal sex and all these different things that children should not be exposed to."

Whoa, thats out there, yes, but Sherrill is not alone among congressional candidates in some of her more eyebrow-raising beliefs.

Elizabeth Felton, also running for Frankels seat, promotes a debunked conspiracy theory that Hillary Clinton ran a child sex-trafficking ring out of a Washington, D.C. pizza parlor.

Two candidates running for the GOP nomination in another Palm Beach County congressional district also espouse seemingly outlandish views. Jessi Melton asserts communists run Broward County and Darlene Swaffar claims the government confiscates children from families who refuse to immunize them.

Meanwhile, four other candidates vying for three other congressional seats across Florida have also advocated wild conspiracy theories. Those include allegations the "American Baseball League" is being taken over by Marxists and the implication that the "C" in the Chick-Fil-A logo is a symbol of sexual deviancy.

Political experts say the 2020 election has brought out candidates who are a standard deviation or two toward the margins of the spectrum.

"Normally, political parties would do things to suppress their fringes," said political strategist Rick Wilson. "Now, they don't have the ability to stop these people from defining themselves as the core of the Republican Party."

In Florida, a common denominator among most of the the conspiracy theorists is they follow Q Anonymous QAnon, or Q, for short.

Among other things, Q adherents posit that a "Deep State" cabal of pedophiles run by political elites, business leaders and Hollywood celebrities are plotting to take over the world. Qs mission? "Enlighten" followers in an attempt to prevent that from happening.

Another commonality: They support President Donald Trump, whom many Q followers point to as the one who will lead believers "from darkness to light."

To be sure, the Q candidates also make mainstream, conservative arguments.

Protecting unborn babies? Check. Cleaning Floridas waterways? Check. Improving education, halting sex trafficking and fiercely defending second amendment rights? Check, check, check.

However, Q candidates often have other beliefs beliefs that not long ago would only have been whispered in private with like-minded individuals. But no more.

One political analyst said the beliefs are heartfelt.

"When they say they believe something, they are not lying," said Joseph Uscinski, Associate Professor of Political Science and specialist in public opinion and mass media at University of Miami. "Generally these beliefs are sincere, and this is what they think is true."

Certainly, the QAnon crowd has become more visible and outspoken across Florida over the past few years.

At some of President Trumps rallies, they stand out by wearing t-shirts or holding signs with codes identifying themselves as believers. On the internet, they use symbols like triangles, owls and lightning bolts; and hashtags like #GreatAwakening, #Q, #QAnon, #QAnonTruth, #OutOfTheShadows, #FallCabal and #WWG1WGA "Where we go one, we go all."

They have appeared at local government hearings, too. At a June 23 Palm Beach County Commission meeting to discuss mandating face masks, conspiracy theorists were front and center, ranting about the devil, the "Deep State," pedophiles and 5G technology.

From political fringe to mainstream

Experts say the proliferation of conspiracy candidates this election cycle is unsurprising, particularly in blue states.

"Youve got districts and states that tend to be strongly Democrat or Republican, and you are more likely to see them come up particularly in places that are solidly blue," said Mark Fenster, law professor at the University of Florida. "Places where the Republican Party is fairly small, out of power, and very intensely motivated to believe the worst of the other side."

No longer on the political fringe, candidates espousing conspiracy theories have drawn support and raised money.

Case-in-point: Sherrills opponent Laura Loomer, is arguably the highest-profile conspiracy theory candidate in Palm Beach County. Loomer, who denies any association with QAnon, has raised a stunning $1 million, much of it in large donations.

"Big donors tend to give money to candidates that they believe are going to win, no matter their views," said John Krosnick, professor of political science at Stanford University. "Then they will own them."

Another candidate that has embraced conspiracy theories about communism, Melton, has raised over $156,000, including 22 donations from WinRed, a GOP fundraising platform created by Trump, Jared Kushner and Republican congressional leaders, among others.

Melton has also snagged high-profile endorsements from Kentucky GOP U.S. Sen. Rand Paul and political adviser and Trump insider Roger Stone, who recently had his prison sentence commuted after being convicted of seven felonies. Stone also endorsed Loomer.

Like Loomer, Melton has had her share of troubles with social media. Twitter suspended Melton on several occasions after she posted doctored photos, fake quotes, and medical misinformation.

Down, but far from out, Loomer and Melton found acceptance on Parler an alternative social media site where conspiracy theories run rampant and facts, falsified quotes, doctored videos and misinformation can be shared without fear of censorship.

It is a place where subscribers can learn about how FEMA is planning a mass slaughter of Christians with the use of guillotines. And how Trump saved thousands of kidnapped babies hidden in cages under Central Park and in San Francisco. And how Bill Gates plans to implant microchips in people through the coronavirus vaccine, as well as how those in power plan to confiscate everyones money and turn them into slaves.

While the subject of conspiracy theories runs the gamut from how 5G radiation causes coronavirus to why Dr. Anthony Fauci is behind the "Plandemic," child sex trafficking rings seem to be the conspiracy theory of choice among QAnon followers.

These rings are omnipresent, they say, run by Satan-worshiping demons such as Hillary Clinton, the Obamas, Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson and Oprah Winfrey. One widely shared video accused online furniture retailer Wayfair of being part of a sex trafficking ring.

In July, TikTok joined Twitter in blocking Q-related hashtags and banning thousands of accounts after reports of Q members stalking other subscribers and not adhering to posted guidelines. Days later, Trump threatened to shut TikTok down.

Bipartisan conspiracy politics

Pam Wohlschlegel, committee member of the Republican Executive Committee of Palm Beach County, said the focus on conspiracy theorists in this years primary elections is overplayed. She doubts they will get much traction at the ballot box.

"I would think that most people won't support it," Wohlschlegel said.

Either way, Wohlschlegel said, the Republican Party, like the Democratic Party, does not prohibit anyone from running on its ticket and is not responsible for what individual candidates espouse. Its up to the voters to decide.

"Make intelligent decisions when you vote," she recommended. "The only way to do that is to study the candidates and take every advantage you can to meet them in person."

Wilson, a member of the Lincoln Project that opposes Trump, said the damage to the GOPs brand will be long-lasting.

"Its going to make the Republican Party much less sellable as an entity in suburbs among educated voters and those who are not mentally amenable to the absurdity it represents," he said.

Political affiliation does not dictate ones propensity for believing conspiracy theories, said Uscinski, who has written three books on the subject.

"It's not based on left-right politics," he said. "Its an absolute rejection of left-right politics. QAnon wants to kill the Clintons and Obamas, but they also want to kill the Bushes, Mike Pence, Oprah, Tom Hanks."

He also points out that, in the current election cycle, the right has not been the only side to fall victim to conspiracy theories.

"He ran against his own party and said everything is corrupt," Uscinski said of former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. "He just sticks with one conspiracy that the 1% control everything. But because Democrats dont have their own version of QAnon, you dont really hear about it that much."

But on a path paved by the highest-ranking government official in the nation, every QAnon candidate in Florida is running on a Republican ticket, save for one Independent. Trump opened the door, Uscinski said, and believers walked through it.

"Trump ran as a Republican, but he didnt run as a traditional Republican or a conservative," he said. "He ran as his own thing, which was against the establishment at large."

QAnon in a nutshell

QAnon is an unorganized faction bound by shared beliefs. Its roots trace back to 18th century Germany, but it did not garner mainstream media attention in the U.S. until the summer of 2018, when QAnon supporters wore distinguishing T-shirts to a Trump rally in Tampa.

There is no identified leader of QAnon, but some followers believe it to be a government insider with access to secret intelligence information. The leader then disseminates to QAnon followers the "truth" that the cabal the secret political operatives who run the country behind the scenes is attempting to hide.

QAnon writings tend to refer to people who should be feared in general terms by referring to them vaguely as "they," "the bad people," or the "Illuminati" powerful players like Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Beyonc and Jay-Z who are hell-bent on world domination, they say.

Those who have been "redpilled are the enlightened ones. Those "bluepilled" are ignorant deniers of truth who choose darkness over light, ignorance over actuality.

Conspiracy theory culture can take hold, Krosnick said, when people have trouble accepting that a traumatic event can be caused by a lone individual or happenstance.

"You can understand why someone at home would wonder or say, This doesnt pass the smell test of plausibility," he said. "You cant deny JFK was assassinated, but the explanation for many people doesn't feel right."

In the past two decades, the rise of social media, combined with the proliferation of broadcasting, has helped propel conspiracy theorists out of the shadows. It was then cultivated by a president who has propagated doubt in mainstream media and government institutions, Krosnick said.

"The president shows up and says all the news you used to trust is now fake," he said. "The countrys ability to be confident that we have trusted sources to go to to know the truth has disintegrated."

So, in the perceived absence of reliable news sources, people gravitate to "conspiracy" theories to answer their questions, "alternative" facts to calm their fears.

"With a president that has promoted skepticism and is telling the public false information that is then widely discredited, now peoples imaginations are free to roam wherever they want to," Krosnick said.

While Trump and the Republicans do not hold a monopoly on conspiracy theories, those espousing the lion's share of those beliefs this election cycle are almost exclusively Republicans, said Fenster.

Typically, he said, conspiracy theories flow at a faster rate from whichever political party is out of power at the time. That is why widespread conspiracy theories on the right are so unusual this election cycle.

"What is different about today is that we have someone who broadcasts conspiracy theories who is in the White House," Fenster said. "It is now more on the right than on the left. And the alt-right community is defined by a conspiratorial view of how the world works."

Trump has become a master at using conspiracy theories to deflect attention away from issues on which he does not want the public to focus, Fenster said. During a recent week of polling that showed the president losing support nationwide, Trump reached for a doozy that reportedly shocked even his inner circle.

"Like the delay the election tweet," Fenster said of Trump's July 31 tweet suggesting the general election be postponed due to unsubstantiated claims of widespread voter fraud. "Or really bad economic or COVID news. It distracts from that and will change the conversation once again."

So, when a president pushes conspiracy theories and convinces the public that facts are not facts and the mainstream media cannot be trusted, what is a skeptic to believe? Enter the QAnon phenomenon.

"Well see if it's on the fringes or not," Fenster said. "This could be a coming out party within Republican Party for QAnon believers, depending upon how they do in the elections."

Establishment GOP support?

Whether establishment Republicans show up to vote for QAnon candidates remains to be seen, said political analyst Trimmel Gomes. So far, national and state parties have said little, if anything, to denounce QAnon candidates.

"You may have traditional Republicans who may be concerned [about QAnon ideology], but theyve already been drowned out by everything else that's sort of invaded the party," Gomes said. "You are seeing the party just unfurl even further. Its getting so far right that anything goes. And now, QAnon has just latched on and become a melting pot for all the crazies."

Krosnick said that while it may appear the QAnon phenomenon is spreading like wildfire, research shows that is not the case. Social media followers can be artificially inflated and posts of support for conspiracy theories, or anything else for that matter, can be perpetuated by bots.

Uscinski, who has for years conducted regular polling in Florida about conspiracy theories, agrees that the number of QAnon followers is not exploding.

"We put it in a feeling thermometer that goes from 0-100," he said of a June 23 poll in Florida. "Q came out a few points better than Fidel Castro. And Florida hates Castro."

Still, some experts are concerned.

"I worry deeply about how we're going to get out of this mess," Krosnick said. "I dont see a pathway forward to help people regain trust in facts. Its going to take a really extraordinary set of leaders in the country to bring us back under control."

Gomes agreed.

"This phenomenon, unfortunately, has picked up legs," he said. "The test will be the upcoming election. Its worrying that people are losing grips on facts and questioning facts ...They don't trust the media, so you cant go back to them with rational arguments. And I don't know what the solution is to stop it."

Wendy Rhodes is a reporter at the Palm Beach Post. She can be reached at @WendyRhodesFL or wrhodes@pbpost.com.

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Election 2020: Conspiracy theory candidates become mainstream by politicizing fear - Ellwood City Ledger