What Triggered Misinformation the Most in 2025?

Misinformation finds fertile ground during conflicts and crises, which are often characterized by high levels of uncertainty, outrage, and fear, as well as intense emotional responses. In such contexts, audiences are frequently on high alert, anticipating the worst to happen.

Information Gaps Fuel the Spread of Misinformation

A lack of reliable information, combined with weakened investigative journalism and the rise of tabloid and sensationalist reporting, contributes to the creation and spread of unverified claims, conspiracies, and allegations. In such an environment, access to accurate information and proactive, responsible reporting become essential in combating misinformation.

When traditional journalism is weakened in the digital sphere, information gaps emerge and are swiftly exploited by rumor creators and spreaders and popular social media users who disseminate content without any verification.

This year was marked by numerous global crises and heightened tensions, including wars and armed conflicts across multiple regions. Such breaking news events often revolve around controversial issues such as power, migration, politics, religion, and human rights, fueling online debates and triggering waves of speculation, allegations, and conspiracy theories.

Controversial commentary and narratives often generate emotional responses marked by outrage and fear. They can also foster doubt about events, undermine confidence in public policies, question the legitimacy of political leaders, or promote beliefs in hidden forces or actors allegedly controlling events or global affairs.

How Politics Fueled the Spread of Misinformation in 2025

Major political topics and events, particularly elections, frequently trigger waves of misinformation and coordinated disinformation campaigns. These campaigns may originate from state-affiliated entities, political opponents, rival groups, or independent actors seeking to polarize societies, manipulate public opinion, or discredit specific individuals or institutions.

During such politically sensitive periods, claims involving high-profile political figures, or content disseminated by them, often gain wide traction online. This visibility can reinforce false beliefs, stereotypes, or the spread of decontextualized information.

In 2025, for example, Donald Trump was among the most frequently fact-checked political figures, as his statements on elections, immigration, public health, and foreign policy repeatedly prompted warnings and corrections across major digital platforms.

Since January 2025, when a rebel coalition officially deposed Bashar al-Assad in Syria and appointed Ahmed al-Sharaa as president of the country’s interim government, Misbar has identified numerous misleading claims circulating about al-Sharaa and, in a recent blog post, Misbar’s investigation team highlighted the five most prominent stories about Ahmed al-Sharaa fact-checked in 2025.

Armed Conflicts Drive the Spread of Misinformation

Armed conflicts and wars have also triggered waves of online misinformation. While false and misleading narratives related to the wars in Ukraine and Gaza continue to circulate widely, similar claims have surrounded other conflicts in Sudan, Syria, Nigeria, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and other regions.

This year marked the halt of the war on Gaza, one of the most devastating conflicts in recent history, which was accompanied by an overwhelming volume of misinformation and disinformation. In a dedicated blog, Misbar highlighted the most prominent Israeli disinformation narratives that circulated throughout the year.

The armed conflict in Sudan also triggered the widespread circulation of misleading claims and narratives. Misbar debunked numerous allegations and investigated multiple visuals and images linked to the conflict. Notably, coverage of the Sudan war was heavily marked by the proliferation of AI-driven misinformation, including AI-generated videos and images.

The security crisis in Nigeria, along with clashes between the Nigerian army and terrorist groups, has also been a major target of misleading and false narratives this year. Misbar debunked several claims related to these events, including the recycling of outdated videos falsely presented as footage from the crisis.

Amid rising tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan, and in the context of developments affecting Afghan migrants and refugees living in Pakistan, old videos resurfaced online and were falsely linked to the escalating situation between the neighboring countries.

The situation of migrants worldwide, global migration policies, and religious differences, alongside separate shootings and attacks in various locations in which Muslim individuals were claimed to be responsible, have also triggered a widespread wave of anti-Muslim and anti-migrant misinformation. These narratives have predominantly targeted Muslim communities and migrants globally.

Misinformation Surrounded Natural Disasters and Crises

Disasters and natural crises, such as floods, volcanic eruptions, and fires, also triggered waves of online misinformation in 2025, as social media users rushed to fill uncertainty and gaps in official information with speculation and conspiracy theories. Misbar’s investigation team debunked numerous claims, including outdated and entirely AI-generated videos of volcanic eruptions that were falsely presented as depicting specific, real events.

Amid the Los Angeles fires, Misbar also debunked claims, including visuals alleged to show the severity of the blazes. Misbar found that these images contained AI-generated or manipulated scenes and did not depict the fires in Los Angeles, United States.

How Social Media and AI Fueled the Spread of Misinformation

In 2025, misinformation was fueled not only by controversial topics but also by social media platforms and their algorithms, which remained primary channels for its dissemination. Recommendation systems designed to maximize engagement also took part in amplifying sensational or misleading content, giving such posts more visibility.

At the same time, advances in AI-generated texts, images, and deepfakes became a major driver of misinformation. Highly realistic videos and photos created with artificial intelligence, paired with baseless or misleading claims, circulated widely, creating new waves of content that were increasingly difficult for both users and platforms to detect and debunk.

AI chatbots also contributed to the spread of misleading narratives. For instance, following the Bondi Beach attack near Sydney, Australia, X’s AI chatbot Grok faced widespread criticism for propagating false claims and showing errors following users’ questions related to the attack. When users shared a video of Ahmed Al-Ahmed, who disarmed one of the attackers, the chatbot falsely claimed the footage was an old viral video of a man climbing a palm tree.

On numerous other occasions, the chatbot was found spreading misleading commentary and narratives, often drawing on users’ comments and recycling the previously provided information to answer public queries. 

In a previous blog, Misbar’s investigation team highlighted that the AI chatbot integrated into X (formerly Twitter) can mislead users under the guise of fact-checking, underscoring the risks of AI-powered moderation without transparency.

Combating Misinformation in the Digital Era

Amid these widespread and diverse waves of misinformation and disinformation, coordinated fact-checking efforts are crucial. Yet, the fight against online falsehoods remains a shared responsibility, requiring the active efforts of governments, intergovernmental organizations, regional councils, major tech companies, and social media platforms. Journalism and media schools and institutes also play a key role in equipping a new generation of journalists with fact-checking skills and techniques, fostering awareness of the harm misinformation can cause, and preparing them to effectively combat it.

Policymakers and public institutions also play a crucial role in this battle by designing comprehensive, 360-degree policies aimed at addressing the phenomenon and strengthening media literacy among the public. Moreover, proactive publishing and active communication play a central role in providing accurate and credible information on public-interest events and issues, helping to reduce information gaps and counter the spread of conspiracies and rumors.

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