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In recent years, major social media platforms have implemented increasinglystrict moderation policies, resulting in bans and restrictions on conspiracytheory-related content. To circumvent these restrictions, conspiracy theoristsare turning to alternatives, such as Telegram, where they can express andspread their views with fewer limitations. Telegram offers channels -- virtualrooms where only administrators can broadcast messages -- and a more permissivecontent policy. These features have created the perfect breeding ground for acomplex ecosystem of conspiracy channels.  In this paper, we illuminate this ecosystem. First, we propose an approach todetect conspiracy channels. Then, we discover that conspiracy channels can beclustered into four distinct communities comprising over 17,000 channels.Finally, we uncover the "Conspiracy Money Machine," revealing how mostconspiracy channels actively seek to profit from their subscribers. We findconspiracy theorists leverage e-commerce platforms to sell questionableproducts or lucratively promote them through affiliate links. Moreover, weobserve that conspiracy channels use donation and crowdfunding platforms toraise funds for their campaigns. We determine that this business involveshundreds of donors and generates a turnover of over $90 million.

The Conspiracy Money Machine: Uncovering Telegram's Conspiracy Channels and their Profit Model