malinformation
noun
factual information shared in a misleading way to deliberately cause harm
What does malinformation mean?
Malinformation refers to factual information that is shared in a deceptive, misleading way (as by omitting context) in order to deliberately cause harm. Malinformation is distinguished from misinformation (“incorrect or misleading information”) and disinformation (“false information deliberately and often covertly spread (as by the planting of rumors) in order to influence public opinion or obscure the truth”).
Examples of malinformation
In health contexts, an example of malinformation might be emphasizing rare side effects without context or using partial data to make it seem like an intervention doesn’t work. Because it's rooted in facts, malinformation often feels especially convincing, and that's what makes it so tricky.
—Kegan Tulloch, The Eastern Echo (Eastern Michigan University), 4 Dec. 2025
How do you know the food is healthful? How do you know it is nutritious? There is so much information, misinformation, and malinformation out there, how can you know whom to trust?
—Most common form of malinformation is when genuine info is reproduced with manipulated temporal or spatial context.
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Where does malinformation come from?
Mal- is a common combining form in English with several meanings, including “bad’ (as in malpractice). The mal in malinformation is likely influenced by this as well as words like malicious and malevolent which could describe the motivation of one spreading malinformation.
How is malinformation used?
Since malinformation is usually true, factual information being spread in a deceitful, manipulative manner, discussion that invokes malinformation is focused less on debunking false information than on providing useful context and pointing out the malign intentions of the person or entity sharing malinformation.
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