06. The 2025 Veritas Campaign
In 2025, the European nation of Belleros experiences widespread civil unrest following a disinformation campaign about government corruption and societal inequality. The campaign, spearheaded by a shadowy group known as "Veritas," uses sophisticated AI tools to create fake videos of government officials engaging in corrupt acts. These videos go viral on platforms like GlobalNet and Spark, sparking protests across major cities like Belleros' capital, Athenia. The misinformation is so convincing that even respected journalists like Marco Bianchi of the Athenia Daily are initially fooled.
Individual outcomes
Citizens, including university student Sofia Andreou, face uncertainty and fear, leading to social disintegration.
Societal outcomes
Belleros' governmental structures teeter on the brink of collapse due to eroded public trust. People don’t know what to believe anymore because of the wide-spread disinformation. This leads to relativism, cynicism and apathy.
Competences involved in this scenario:
Social systems affected by this scenario:
M6. Claim verification
D4. Detection of digital deception
D5. AI tools and disinformation
Government
Law Enforcement
Media
Political System