A number of countries in Europe ranked misinformation as one of its top five risks, due its ability to influence voter intentions and harm the wider geopolitical environment.
Misinformation and disinformation will be the top risk to countries around the world over the next two years, the World Economic Forum (WEF) has revealed in its annual Global Risk Report.
The WEF surveyed hundreds of experts worldwide and found that false and misleading content is seriously harming the geopolitical environment in a number of ways.
It enables foreign entities to affect voter intentions, it can sow doubt among the public about what is happening in conflict zones, and it can be used to tarnish the image of products or services from another country.
It’s the second year in a row that misinformation has been listed as the biggest global risk.
“Respondent concern has remained high following a year of ‘super elections’, with this risk also a top concern across a majority of age categories and stakeholder groups,” the report said.
Misinformation was followed in the two-year risk ranking by extreme weather events, state-based armed conflict, societal polarisation and cyber espionage and warfare.
When considering a 10-year outlook, fake news falls to fifth place, according to the WEF, but it still ranks as the highest non-climate-based risk.
Looking up to 2035, extreme weather events become the biggest risk identified by respondents to the survey, followed by biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse, critical change to Earth systems, and natural resource shortages.
The report notes that misinformation also amplifies these environmental risks, in addition to other threats such as armed conflict.
A number of countries in Europe ranked misinformation as one of its top five risks up to 2027, according to the WEF.
They include the Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and Sweden.
Other European countries such as France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain and the UK also rank it highly, often in the Top 10.
It’s becoming increasingly hard to know where to turn for true information, according to the report, with political and societal polarisation skewing narratives and distorting facts.
This contributes to low and declining trust in the media, with only 40% of respondents across 47 countries saying they trust most news.
Respondents in high-income countries are generally more likely to express concern about the risk of misinformation over the next two years than respondents in lower-income countries, according to the report, although there are some exceptions.
People worried about disinformation also highlight societal polarisation as one of the most severe risks in the same timeframe, with poor quality content and lack of trust in information sources continuing to present a threat to societies.
“Polarisation within societies is further hardening views and affecting policy-making,” said Saadia Zahidi, managing director at the WEF. “It also continues to fan the flames of misinformation and disinformation, which, for the second year running, is the top-ranked short- to medium-term concern across all risk categories.”
“Efforts to combat this risk are coming up against a formidable opponent in Generative AI-created false or misleading content that can be produced and distributed at scale,” she added.
Experts have repeatedly said that the best way to protect yourself from misinformation is to stick to impartial, well-established news outlets such as news agencies in order to keep on top of the most accurate information.
The WEF has suggested ways in which countries more generally can better protect citizens from the risks, including expanding upskilling in automated algorithms, boosting funding for digital literacy, and improving accountability and transparency frameworks.
“There is an urgent need for comprehensive public awareness campaigns to educate citizens about the risks associated with digital spaces, as well as the tools and practices they can use to protect themselves and boost trust in their use of platforms,” the report said.
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