While nurses, pharmacists and doctors continue to command near-universal trust in Ireland, social media influencers sit firmly at the other end of the scale, according to the latest Ipsos B&A Veracity Index.
The annual study, first conducted in 2005, measures the public’s trust in professions. In 2025, just 7% of Irish people said they trust influencers to tell the truth, making them the least trusted group surveyed. Politicians (23%) and government ministers (32%) also languish near the bottom, while even artificial intelligence — at 29% — is trusted by more people than influencers.
For the advertising and media world, the findings highlight both a challenge and an opportunity. Despite their ubiquity on brand campaigns, influencers continue to face scepticism among the public, with trust levels moving only marginally year-on-year (+1 point). By contrast, traditional professions associated with credibility, such as scientists (85%, +4 points) and teachers (87%, -4 points), remain strong in the public’s mind.
Tarik Laher, Director at Ipsos B&A, said the results underline a widening gap in how different professions are perceived.
“The Irish public continue to trust our healthcare professionals the most when it comes to telling us the truth, as they have since the inception of the Ipsos B&A Veracity Index,” he explained. “It is encouraging to see that we retain our faith in many professions, with the majority of professions showing positive increases this year, suggesting that overall trust levels are improving.”
But he added a note of caution for those in politics, technology and media.
“If those mentioned to date might be deemed ‘the faithful’, who do we consider to be ‘the traitors’? The news is less positive for government ministers and politicians, as their traditionally low trust scores show further decline. Less than one in three of us trust artificial intelligence, while social media influencers have the lowest trust score overall.”
Other results from the survey show trust in journalists at 51%, a slight improvement, while advertising executives remain relatively low at 24% but stable. Charity CEOs (53%, +5 points) and estate agents (41%, +7 points) recorded some of the largest year-on-year gains, suggesting that reputational recovery is possible even for sectors that have historically struggled.
For brands, agencies and media owners, the message is clear: credibility counts. As Laher put it, “There is no doubt that our trust levels continue to vary, and with no foolproof shield available, no professions are immune to the judgement of the Irish public.”
The full Ipsos B&A Veracity Index 2025 results are available online HERE
