Reputation Management: Fake Donation Receipts and Their Social Implications

This case examines the ethical and reputational crisis surrounding Pham Nhu Phuong, a former national athlete in Vietnam, whose decision to falsify charitable donation receipts during Typhoon Yagi relief efforts escalated into a national scandal. What began as a seemingly minor exaggeration—a photoshopped bank receipt inflating a 500,000 VND donation to 500 million VND—quickly spiraled after the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) publicly released extensive transaction records, exposing discrepancies. As the controversy spread rapidly across social media platforms, including Facebook and TikTok, further evidence of falsified donations emerged, intensifying public outrage and media scrutiny. Phuong’s attempts to manage the crisis, including additional explanations and eventually shutting down her social media accounts, failed to contain the backlash. The case highlights the role of digital transparency, social media amplification, and public accountability in modern reputation management. It also situates Phuong’s misconduct within a broader pattern, as thousands of other individuals—including public figures and private citizens—were found to have similarly inflated their charitable contributions. This case invites discussion on ethical decision-making, crisis communication, stakeholder trust, and the long-term consequences of deceptive behavior in the digital age.