What Is A Crisis of Malevolence in the Context of Crisis Management?

An organisation faces a crisis of malevolence when opponents or miscreant individuals use illegal means or other extreme tactics to express hostility or anger toward or seek gain from a company, country, or economic system, perhaps to destabilise or destroy it. 

Types of Malevolence

Malevolence can come in 2 different forms:

• Internal influences
• External influences

Internal Malevolence includes threats like employee violence, sexual harassment, and discrimination (Due to race, sex, religion etc.) towards other staff. So long as the threat originates within the organisation (typically posed by staff members), it is considered internal.

External Malevolence includes threats like Product sabotage, Equipment Sabotage, Extortion, Kidnapping, Corporate Terrorism, and Cyber terrorism. So long as the threat originates from outside the organization, it is considered external. 

Real-life Examples of Crisis of Malevolence

1. Product Tampering

• 1982 Chicago Tylenol murders
• 1993 Pepsi Tampering Crisis
• Cow & Gate Baby Food Tampering case

2. Kidnapping company's officer

• List of kidnapping 

3. False rumours all lead to the crisis of malevolence 

• False rumour with real consequences

4. Extortion

• Domino's Record Case
• Nokia operating system extortion case

More Information About CM Blended Learning

To know more about our blended learning program and when the next course is scheduled, contact our friendly course consultant colleagues via sales.ap@bcm-institute.org.

We look forward to having you with us then.

If you want to find out more about how the crisis is related to crisis management and crisis communication, do read more: