FUD
Etymology
An acronym for "fear, uncertainty, and doubt." It predates crypto by decades, entering tech lore in the 1970s to describe how a dominant vendor (the phrase is associated with IBM sales culture) could scare buyers away from rivals. Crypto communities revived it for talk that spooks holders into selling.
noun · /fuhd/
Fear, uncertainty, and doubt spread to undermine confidence in something.
What it names
A specific persuasion tactic — winning not by argument but by seeding dread — useful across sales, politics, and markets.
Example
The article was pure FUD — vague warnings and no evidence, timed right before the vote.
Related idea
A cousin of astroturfing: FUD is the fearful message, while astroturfing fakes the grassroots crowd that spreads it.