In introductory remarks for the release of the 2012 Edelman Trust Barometer results, Richard Edelman provided background for the pan-institutional deterioration of trust. “In 2008-2009, in the wake of a recession that saw large, global companies such as Lehman Brothers and AIG collapse, trust in business imploded. Government stepped in with bailouts and new regulations. But in 2011, government became paralyzed by the politics of extremism and endless haggling – and the public lost confidence.”

Gideon Rachman, writing for the Financial Times, calls it the age of indignation. “This was a year of global indignation, from the Occupy Wall Street movement to the Moscow election protests and China’s village revolts. It was popular protests on either side of the Mediterranean – in Tahrir Square in Cairo and Syntagma Square in Athens – that set the tone for 2011.” Social networks linked by social media are now the sources of trust and media of choice.

Ever alert, the Willy Suttons of the world are  working these trusted environments. This week’s Economist () introduces the notion of ‘affinity fraud.’ “The term refers to scams in which the perpetrator uses personal contacts to swindle a specific group, such as a church congregation, a rotary club, a professional circle or an ethnic community. Once the scammer gains their trust, his scam spreads like smallpox. Most affinity frauds are Ponzi schemes, in which money from new investors is used to repay old ones, or is siphoned off by the promoters.’ Here’s the rub. According to the Economist, “Mistrust of mainstream finance helps the scammers. The big guys on Wall Street have shown they can’t be trusted, they say; better to go with someone you know.”

Out of the pan and into the fire?