How much does brand integrity cost in the age of misinformation?

How much does brand integrity cost in the age of misinformation?

• Online disinformation has become one of the biggest threats to brands in the digital age.
• A single piece of false information, quickly distributed, can damage a company's reputation and credibility.

How vulnerable is a company when fake news circulates about it? How big can the impact of misinformation be on the integrity of a brand? A fake news can cause massive financial losses and quickly compromise the reputation of brands and beyond. Because, at present, misinformation is considered the most important destabilizing factor for society.

The Danger of Disinformation Globally

In the last two years, World Economic Forumplaced disinformation at the top of global security risks, ahead of climate change, armed conflict and extreme social division.

Recent data shows the size of the problem:

• 1 out of 3 personsShe was exposed to economic misinformation.
• 25% of the planet's population has read fake news related to climate change.
• Just 1 European out of 10feels able to correctly identify a misinformation campaign or fake news spread on social media.

These statistics make us wonder: what, in fact, is the real cost of misinformation?

Losses suffered by companies due to fake news

Cases in recent years demonstrate the major financial impact of misinformation on companies.

Disinformation affects companies' stock market performance

In 2022, a fake post on X (formerly Twitter) about Elli Lilly caused a 4.37% drop in the price at which the company's shares were traded on the Stock Exchange. In one day, the company lost $22 billion.

In order to have a correct reference, after a single fake news, a pharmaceutical company lost 10x the value produced by the entire pharmaceutical market in Romania in a year.

How Fake News and AI Manipulation Affect Banking Sector Liquidity

In 2023, following news on social media, Sillicon Valley Bank customers withdrew more than $42 billion from the bank's deposits in 24 hours. A few days later, U.S. authorities suspended the bank's operations, in perhaps the most notorious case of “massive social media-induced cash withdrawals” in recent years.

But the impact of social media on the banking sector does not stop there: a recent study showed that a third of bank customers will withdraw cash from deposits after being exposed to fake news created with the help of AI and distributed on social media.

Basically, for every $10 you spend on social media to share a fake news, bank deposits worth of can be affected 1 million dollars.

Forum for Immunity to Disinformation

On April 14, you find out at FORUM FOR IMMUNITY TO MISINFORMATIONWhat can you do tomorrow to protect the brand's reputation in this context. We will try to get answers to the following questions together:

• How does misinformation manifest itself and what impact does it have on citizens and consumers?
• What legislation can you access to manage a misinformation crisis?
• What communication strategies can prevent or lessen the impact of misinformation?
• What are good practices in this area?
• How do we better organize ourselves within companies to combat misinformation?

The Forum for Immunity to Disinformation is the first event in Romania dedicated to the private environment that brings together some of the most credible voicesat European and national level in the fight against disinformation. The last seats are available herein.

Key questions about brand integrity

Until then, here are quick answers to some essential questions:

1. What does brand integrity mean?
   The integrity of a brand is reflected in the alignment between the values promoted by the company and the perception of the audience.

2. What are the first steps to prevent a Reputational crisis?

• Constant monitoring of the online environment
• Transparent communication
• Collaboration with specialists in crisis management.

3. Why is a communication strategy needed for crisis situations?

Because only a well-planned strategy can protect the brand in the long term in the face of the wave of false information.

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