What To Know About Wayfair And This Human Trafficking Conspiracy Theory

Online furniture retailer Wayfair Inc W was the target of the latest social media conspiracy theory over the weekend.

What Happened?

The theory, which was spread over the weekend by the online group QAnon, claims that pricey cabinets and other furniture items are code words for missing children, and Wayfair users can purchase these items to have the children delivered to them as part of a human trafficking ring.

There appears to be no real evidence supporting the conspiracy theory.

Why It's Important

Social media users backing the theory have pointed out that a handful of Wayfair furniture items have names that are similar to children reported missing. Those items also appeared to have extremely high prices relative to the products being sold.

In a statement to Newsweek, a spokesperson from Wayfair said the company has updated the listings of the items to convey that the products in question are fairly priced.

“There is, of course, no truth to these claims. The products in question are industrial grade cabinets that are accurately priced,” the spokesperson said.

What Is QAnon?

QAnon is an online group that supports the conspiracy theory that President Donald Trump is secretly fighting a war against a government Deep State and a secret ring of powerful child sex traffickers.

QAnon members have been emboldened in recent years following the 2019 arrest and subsequent death of Jeffrey Epstein for ties to sex trafficking of underage girls. Epstein was a prominent American financier who had high-profile ties to celebrities, politicians and royalty, and his death by suicide while imprisoned is also a source of controversy among many online conspiracy theorists.

What's Next?

A spokesperson from Twitter Inc TWTR said the platform is not taking down posts related to the conspiracy theory because the claims do not appear to be causing any real-world harm.

Wayfair shares traded lower by 0.7% on Monday.