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Some people are convinced there are secret cities hidden under Antarctica. Others swear the government can control hurricanes. Then there are people who still can’t believe that we landed on the moon.
There is no shortage of weird and crazy conspiracy theories out there.
They’ve always existed, but the internet has given them a megaphone — and now, more and more people are sharing their wildest and most unhinged ideas online.
A few of them even made us dig a little deeper, and let’s just say we lost more hours than we’d like to admit going down that rabbit hole.
Bored Panda also spoke to Dr. Karen Douglas, a professor of social psychology at the University of Kent in the UK, and Professor Stephan Lewandowsky at the University of Bristol, to understand how conspiracy theories take hold.
Let us know which theory sounds the craziest to you, and which ones you believe in.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
homophobia/racism/sexism etc exist so the masses fight each other instead of looking at what the rich are doing
RELATED:
#2
Humans are suffering from zoochosis
Otto Katz 5 hours ago
If you’ve ever been to a zoo and seen polar bears swimming in circles compulsively for hours, or seen tigers pacing back and forth endlessly, or elephants swaying back and forth rhythmically, all with a blank look in their eyes, you’ve witnessed an animal suffering from zoochosis. "There are people who argue that animals are happy in zoos, or are at least content. Are they? Keep reading to learn about zoochosis and what it tells us about the degree to which captive animals suffer."
Before the internet, these ideas traveled through word of mouth, late-night radio shows, and tabloid magazines.
People whispered about UFO crashes in the 1940s. They debated whether Bigfoot is real. The stories spread slowly, but most people have heard them.
But now, they move at lightning speed.
“It is easy to find and share conspiracy theories on social media. People who are interested in conspiracy theories can find them almost immediately and they can spread rapidly,” Dr. Karen Douglas tells Bored Panda.
Dr. Douglas has spent more than a decade studying conspiracy theories, how they start, and why they persist.
“Once conspiracy theories are out there, they are difficult to quell, especially when some of the facts are still unknown. Even after that, once people believe in a conspiracy theory, it is often difficult to convince them otherwise.”
#3
Epstein isn’t at the top, it’s why he documented everything
TotallyNOTAFox 4 hours ago
Nah, he probably collected all that stuff to apply pressure if anybody tried to go after him
#4
America's turning into 1940s Germany.
#5
Children have the ability to see & talk to spirits & ghosts. They grow out of it due to peer pressure & self doubt
Forrest Hobbs 4 hours ago
I've long thought that there's an awful lot more to the world than what we think. After all, our ideas about the world are only what our brains tell us based on what our brains glean from our senses. René Descartes was right - the only thing anyone can really be sure about is that we can doubt things. Spirits and ghosts? Those are just words. But there's stuff in the universe, perhaps all around us, that most of us fail to perceive. I suspect that young children learn to modify their perceptions to fit in with what they think they're supposed to be perceiving. I also suspect I'll not live long enough to find out any more than that.
Believing in conspiracy theories doesn’t automatically mean someone is crazy. It’s often related to how people think and make sense of the world.
Research suggests that people are attracted to conspiracy theories when one or more fundamental psychological needs are frustrated, says Dr. Douglas.
“The first of these needs are epistemic, related to the need to know the truth and have clarity and certainty. The other needs are existential, which are related to the need to feel safe and to have some control over things that are happening around us, and social, which are related to the need to maintain our self-esteem and feel positive about the groups that we belong to.”
She believes that people might be attracted to conspiracy theories to try to satisfy these needs and to cope with difficult situations.
#6
Smart phones are the worst thing to happen to mankind and it was not only made to be a distraction but a ball and chain keeping us from being better.
#7
The reason the goverment doesn't develop education is that they don't want us to think critically and see through their actions. They want to keep us poorly educated so we believe everything they're doing benefits the country
Big events such as pandemics, wars, elections, and extreme weather create uncertainty. And conspiracy theories offer simple answers with someone to blame.
“This perspective essentially means that anyone can fall into conspiracy theories if the circumstances are right. This is perhaps one explanation why we tend to see a lot of conspiracy theories when things happen like assassination attempts, important elections, sudden controversies surrounded by secrecy, or during pandemics,” says Dr. Douglas.
“People are looking for ways to understand what is going on and they don't like the uncertainty that often surrounds unfolding events. Also, a simple explanation is often not very appealing. People assume that there must somehow be a bigger explanation, or more going on than people know about.”
#8
vampires and witches are 100% real and I am sure of it
LakotaWolf (she/her) 4 hours ago
OP probably wishes for a Twilight-esque romance with a séxy sparkly vampire and writes fanfiction about it XD
#9
The reason we will never truly see the real E files is because it's SO bad that it will cause a worldwide panic & outrage, which will lead to all of us being united and they will NEVER allow that to happen 💯
Forrest Hobbs 4 hours ago
Yeah, only no. The Epstein files are totally irrelevant to most of the world's population. It's not even dealing with the worst stuff. The Panama Papers leak didn't cause any unity of 'us' against 'them'. And why? One reason is that 'they' control the means by which 'we' communicate. 'They' have long rigged social media algorithms to keep 'us' arguing with each other, to stop 'us' uniting. It's worse in Russia and China. 🤷
#10
Schools are slowly teaching kids less and less important things so the future generations don’t know what the government are doing
Surveys over the past few years suggest a large percentage of people believe at least one conspiracy theory.
Most Americans, at least 54%, believe that Lee Harvey Oswald definitely or probably did not act alone in assassinating John F Kennedy in 1963.
One in five or fewer think it's likely true that the government is using COVID-19 vaccines to microchip Americans.
#11
a lot of celebrities don't actually name their kids those super weird names, they're just the names they use in public to protect their kids actual identity
#12
the model that ran out of a party and was screaming about them eating humans was 100% telling the truth😬
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 hour ago (edited)
Er, no. This happened in Monterrey, Mexico. She ran out of a party yelling things about " the royal family, Disney, and one of the richest and most powerful men in Mexico." She accused them of "living in a subterranean base and stealing children and eating human flesh." She apparently pointed at responding officers and yelled "You! You were there! You kílledd Mouriño!" (A politician who died in a plane crash in 2008) and yelled at another officer, "They told me who did they kíll? The Queen of England? The Queen of Germany? Did they kíll the princesses and Mickey Mouse? It was also him!" while pointing at the police officer. This is not a woman exposing some vast cannibal conspiracy, this is a woman who had a mental breakdown and needed help.
While many of these alternative narratives may seem like harmless stories shared online, their impact can stretch far beyond casual conversation.
“Conspiracy theories do have consequences, and can affect people's, intentions, and behaviours. Conspiracy theories historically have been linked with prejudice, genocide, risky health behaviour, climate denial, and more recently some disturbing behaviour related to QAnon and COVID-19 conspiracy theories,” says Dr. Douglas.
She believes they can turn people away from mainstream politics and science in favor of more extreme political views and anti-science attitudes. “For some people they might just be entertaining and harmless fun, but in many cases, they are potentially much more dangerous.”
#13
That we’re being trained to not react to horrific things
LakotaWolf (she/her) 4 hours ago
No, we're just desensitizing ourselves because we have tons of videos of horrific things on the internet and we purposefully watch them. News/media/social media brings us instant reporting on all the tragedies, large and small, that happen every moment around the world. We purposefully immerse ourselves in this stream of tragedies and horrors because we want to, and then we get numb to them. We're not "being trained", we're doomscrolling this to ourselves.
#14
Princess Diana was murdered by the royal family
Forrest Hobbs 4 hours ago (edited)
Princess Diana was k1lled by a combination of Mohamed Fayed's drunk driver, and the fact that she'd not put her seatbelt on - whereupon Mohamed Fayed decided to blame the fuggin' Duke of Edinburgh (the crash also k1lled Mohamed Fayed's son, Dodi). The British royal family doesn't need to k1ll anyone to totally discredit them. Just look at what's happening to the Andrew formerly known as Prince.
#15
The phone reads thoughts
OneHappyPuppy 6 hours ago
Nope, just listens in on our conversations. Hey, Google, find me this and that...
Dr. Douglas says, in conversations with people who believe in conspiracy theories, that it is important to remember these people can sometimes feel quite alienated.
“In a conversation with them, it would not be constructive to be hostile, or behave in a way that ridicules them. This dismisses their views and might alienate them even further. It is therefore important to keep calm and listen.”
“Another thing to bear in mind is that strong conspiracy believers will have done their homework — that is, they usually know a lot more about the topic than other people do. So, when you get into a conversation with someone who believes strongly in a conspiracy theory, it is quite difficult to change their mind, or even to keep up with the discussion, because it always seems like they are one step ahead,” she adds.
#16
AI has existed for a long time before it was made public
Robert T 6 hours ago
The principals behind AI have been around for 200 years. Perceptrons have been around since the 1950's and deep learning perceptrons since the 60's. The problem was that building large networks was difficult and expensive. It is only since we have had much faster processors that can be linked with fast networks that we can build and train sophisticated AI. And it is still as thick as pigpoop when it comes to a lot of things.
#18
things like Epstein Island are FAR more common than we all think. there are probably thousands more Epstein islands.
Gold Monkey 16 minutes ago
Not literal islands. And if you mean human s3x traffickers, duh. If you mean ones like Epstein who cater to the wealthy, powerful, and famous, surely there aren't thousands of them, but I'm sure there's quite a few.
Many conspiracy theorists also believe that they are critical thinkers who are trying to uncover the truth, "whereas others are still in the dark, or are 'sheep' who believe everything they are told, says Dr .Douglas.
“One strategy therefore might be to appeal to this value and ask the conspiracy believer to critically think about their information — Where did it come from? Who said it? Is this information reliable? This might uncover flaws in the conspiracy theory and you might be able to challenge them this way.”
#19
AI is being made to look so real so that we can’t trust anything we see in the future
#21
The reason cursive is no longer being taught is so later generations can’t read original texts. The constitution, bill of rights, anything like that is written in cursive.
LakotaWolf (she/her) 4 hours ago
Uh, I feel like it's possible to READ cursive without ever having learned to write cursive.
Usually, the boldest claims travel furthest.
“Conspiracy theories spread rapidly because algorithms amplify engaging content — especially if it is negative. And, because conspiratorial claims are emotionally arousing, they have an edge. Because platforms reward attention rather than accuracy, misinformation and conspiracy theories often outcompete accurate information,” Professor Stephan Lewandowsky, Chair in Cognitive Psychology at the University of Bristol, tells Bored Panda.
He says these theories have real-world consequences.
“I would point to the anti-vaccine conspiracy narrative linking the MMR vaccine to autism. Despite overwhelming refutation, it has eroded trust in public health, reduced vaccination uptake, and contributed to disease resurgences — illustrating how misinformation can produce tangible, population-level harms.”
#22
this is very recent but Madeline McCann was sold to Epstein
Forrest Hobbs 4 hours ago
Yeah, but that's just mad. I mean, seriously? 🤷 (I feel slightly nauseous typing this, but: Epstein wasn't into girls quite *that* young)
#23
Epstein is alive
#24
Time is moving faster.
Sometimes, repetition can make even the wildest ideas seem believable.
There's also something called confirmation bias. When someone believes something, they start looking for more evidence that supports that belief.
Earlier this month, when former US President Barack Obama was asked about aliens in a light-hearted interview, he said, “They’re real, but I haven’t seen them.” That was all it took for headlines to spread like wildfire.
He later clarified that while life may exist somewhere in the vast universe, he saw no evidence of alien contact during his presidency. But by then, the narrative had already taken off.
#25
Area 51 is hiding more than just “aliens”
#26
Diana found out what Andrew and Epstein were doing
Gold Monkey 4 minutes ago
We all know the cause of the crash that k****d Diana. There's no mystery.
#27
Some celebrities fake their death as they believe that's the only way they can escape fame
Michael Largey 3 hours ago
Yeah, look how well that worked for Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley, Sylvia Plath, JFK, ... Everyone forgotten completely about them.
#28
The very Rich are into child sacrificing and are the Reason most children go missing
#29
Ever since covid world shifted, time is faster, everthing is off, wars are starting, I have a feeling something is coming
#30
Why do things suddenly go wrong when your happy? It’s almost as if were in a simulation where this is planned
David Paterson 3 hours ago
I'll always remember the happiest time of my life. It was just before my near-fatal accident.
#31
Dreams are just parallel realities that can only be accessed through the mind. The body can’t travel through dimensions, but consciousness can.
#32
there is 100% something in the ocean
#33
That woman on the plane saw something
#35
The Miami mall incident was the closest we’ve been to seeing the truth but it’s been silenced by them, why would something that crazy still not be BIG today.
#36
The Nickelodeon symbol is a picture/animation of Epstein Island
#37
That boy is NOT Ryker Webb
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 hour ago
Apparently Ryker is a 3-year-old boy who went missing in 2022 and was found after two days in the woods. He had been outside with his dad, but his dad went inside to grab something and when he came back outside, Ryker was missing. Ryker took shelter in a neighbor's shed (inside a lawnmower bag) and was found by the people who owned the home. He looks a little dehydrated and scared in the photo after he was found, because of course. I couldn't imagine why some people would think that the child that was found wasn't Ryker Webb, and I found this: "Some have suggested that Webb was kidnapped, which is how he made it miles away from his original destination. Others enjoy the theory that skin-walkers were involved. Skin-walkers are known in Navajo culture as harmful witches who can disguise themselves as or possess animals."
#38
The government does the Mandela effect to see how much they can change without us noticing. The Miami mall incident wasn’t just a bunch of kids playing around.
Nathaniel He/Him Cis-Het 6 hours ago
Second mention of the Miami mall incident, I have never heard of it.
#39
kenneka Jenkins did NOT walk herself into that freezer
LakotaWolf (she/her) 1 hour ago
Underage woman (age 19) drinking at a party at a hotel. Alcohol and topiramate (anti-seizure/migraine preventative medication, which was NOT prescribed to her) were found in her system. Security footage shows her staggering around alone and heading towards a large industrial kitchen freezer where she was found. All signs seem to point to that she was underage drinking at a party, got intoxicated, possibly blackout drunk, and wandered the hotel into an unused kitchen area and wandered into a large freezer, and possibly couldn't find her way out again since she was intoxicated. No shadowy figures leading her into the freezer. Freezer had a working handle on the inside that could be used to exit the freezer. Kenneka got drunk at an illegal party (the room was booked using a fraudulent credit card) and wandered off and ended up in the freezer.
#40
The squid games is actually real somewhere in the world
#43
There were giants during the pyramids
#44
Egyptians did not build the pyramids by hand, there is far too much technology, symmetry and weight in them for a standard human to have done it!
Forrest Hobbs 4 hours ago
Oi vey. Debunked so many times. The only remaining puzzle is 'Which of the many proven practical methods did they actually use?' Building the pyramids seems to have been a public works project to keep people employed during the parts of the year when there wasn't enough agricultural work for them to do, Egypt being very very rich at the time.
#45
People with schizophrenia don’t actually hallucinate. They see things “normal” humans aren’t meant to see.
#46
Can we talk about a strange old lady who was caught in American airport with a passport of a country that doesn't exist on earth and the passport was 100 percent original....Where was she from ? was she even real?
LakotaWolf (she/her) 4 hours ago
Later proven to be an AI hoax. Absolutely didn't even happen.
#48
There is no such thing as true freedom. From the moment that humanity learned how to control everybody else they understood that they couldn’t let people make their own decisions because we would all kill each other so they made sure that we could never.
#49
I’m not a flat earther… but I feel like our world is much bigger than what we are taught
#50
Aliens are real, ghosts are real and the megladon species is alive
#51
there’s no way no one has found a cure for cancer, i 100% believe that someones silencing the ones who discovered it
OneHappyPuppy 6 hours ago
If you knew what cancer actually was, you'd know that there is no "cure for cancer" but more like "cures for cancer"
#52
The reason trafficking is a thing is because it is run by the government and no one can tell me otherwise.
#53
You guys remember the Illuminati conspiracy, where all the world leaders worshiped a demon and sacrificed humans ?? Yea. That’s not a theory anymore. It’s the reality.
Billo66 6 hours ago (edited)
Not my belief but found some ...stuff. : "Don Drumpf" (an ancestral version of the family name) totals 666 in English gematria. : removing the vowels from his name (D-N-L-D-J-T-R-M-P) and applying specific numerical logic results in 666. and last but not least. : the Antichrist is sometimes referred to as the "Little Horn" (Daniel 7:8); some interpret the word "Trumpet" (which contains "Trump") as a literal connection to this "horn". OH! And he bought 666 5'th Ave. Plus, Some claims suggest Trump Tower stands roughly 666 feet tall.
#56
MOST mental disorders are caused by the way we live today. the social standards we must obey, the way we treat each other, the way we are expected to have 12 hour shifts to survive. And instead of doing more research and trying to repair the issue, we are given pills.
OneHappyPuppy 6 hours ago
I agree. Mental illnesses existed waay before our current lifestyle, but they are exorbitantly worse nowadays
#57
The tip of the iceberg, they faked the moon landing…. Now to go deeper. The government takes yearly photos of all the kids in school to sell them into human trafficking if someone wants that kid bad enough
#58
the Simpsons were right for a reason. the person who created the Simpsons was involved in a bunch of government stuff involving how time moves and area 51. he was warning us.
LakotaWolf (she/her) 4 hours ago
Er, you're trying to convince me that Matt Groening, who went to a liberal arts college and is a cartoonist, was involved in "government stuff" involving "how time moves"?
What do you think ?
LakotaWolf (she/her) 4 hours ago
Well, the fact that there are people out there who seriously believe some of this stuff really takes away any last shreds of hope I had for humanity as a whole XD
David Paterson 3 hours ago
What makes you think that anyone seriously believes all this stuff? They're all just yanking your chain.
Load More Replies... David Paterson 3 hours ago
The Epstein files are total fiction. They were written for blackmail purposes.
LakotaWolf (she/her) 4 hours ago
Well, the fact that there are people out there who seriously believe some of this stuff really takes away any last shreds of hope I had for humanity as a whole XD
David Paterson 3 hours ago
What makes you think that anyone seriously believes all this stuff? They're all just yanking your chain.
Load More Replies... David Paterson 3 hours ago
The Epstein files are total fiction. They were written for blackmail purposes.
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