Fake news is as old as public communication itself. However, what used to require elaborate campaigns involving human resources can now be automated in a matter of minutes. AI-generated disinformation is fundamentally changing the threat landscape for businesses and is still being underestimated.

This is clearly demonstrated by the latest figures: according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Risk Report (2025) disinformation is one of the greatest short-term global risks of all. The Allianz Risk Barometer 2026 It also shows that AI risks have jumped from 10th to 2nd place globally among the biggest business risks – just behind cyber incidents. Generative AI further exacerbates this risk. Deepfakes, deceptively authentic texts and coordinated bot networks make disinformation campaigns faster, cheaper and harder to detect. Modern AI agents operate on social media platforms as seemingly independent users, reinforcing one another, creating artificial consensus and thus giving the impression of a broad, authentic debate. This is often almost impossible for outsiders to detect.

When trust becomes a target

For businesses, this means that risks can arise suddenly, appear credible and spread virally within hours. The damage often extends far beyond reputation. It affects the trust of customers, employees and investors, the stability of supply chains and, not least, society’s ability to function. Disinformation attacks are often not an isolated phenomenon, but rather the first stage in a hybrid attack scenario aimed at undermining this trust. The fact that many companies are not yet prepared for this is demonstrated by the Edelman Trust Report: Around a third of companies believe, in their own assessment, that they are not sufficiently prepared for disinformation attacks.

Prevention, monitoring, response – an integrated approach

What specific steps should companies take to protect themselves against disinformation? The key is an integrated approach that combines monitoring, communication strategy and organisational structure. Four measures are particularly effective in this regard:

1. Continuous digital listening that detects attacks at an early stage, ideally whilst they are still in their infancy.
2. Clear narratives and reliable channels of information that can be activated immediately in an emergency.
3. Aware employees
4. Interdisciplinary teams comprising members from the communications, IT and legal departments, who can act in a coordinated manner in the event of a crisis.

AI-generated disinformation must therefore become part of regular issues and reputation management, rather than only being addressed once a crisis has already escalated.

One thing is clear: disinformation is no longer just a communication problem – it is a business risk. Companies that recognise this today will be better positioned tomorrow. At ORCA van Loon, we provide support in this area: from risk analysis and communication manuals to training for interdisciplinary crisis teams. Find out more about our approach in the Crisis Prevention.

Based on:

Global Risk Report 2025, Allianz Risk Barometer 2026, Edelman Trust Report, AI agents as a tool for disinformation – research by mimikama, an organisation dedicated to raising awareness of internet abuse, Disinformation attacks against businesses – a study by the VSW Federal Association