10 Most EVIL Companies in History

10 Most Evil Companies in History

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’ll be discussing the 10 Most Evil Companies in History.

For this video, we’ll be going over companies that have historically seen negative public reactions to some or all of their business practices.

What are your thoughts on some of these companies? Sound off in the comments!

Dow Chemical

There have been a number of scandals involving chemical companies over the years. The Union Carbide Corporation had a number of major disasters in the mid-80s, but the infamy surrounding Dow Chemical is arguably even more well known. For starters, there’s the fact that Dow developed both Napalm B and Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. The aforementioned Union Carbide was also a subsidiary of Dow Chemical during the Bhopal Disaster of 1984. This was when a chemical leak at an Indian pesticide plant killed over two thousand people and injured half a million others. All of this was under Dow Chemical’s watch, not to mention other scandals that could easily take over more entries on this list.

Bre-X

The Bre-X Mineral Company was at the center of a huge mining scandal back in 1995, when it initially claimed to have discovered a large storage of gold in Indonesia. The company’s stock prices soared, but things quickly went south when it was uncovered that this claim from Bre-X was false. From there, the story felt like a violent political thriller, with stories of a supposed Bre-X geologist, “Michael de Guzman,” jumping out of a helicopter. Only some claim that it was actually a stolen corpse being tossed from a helicopter made to look like self-destruction. Fast forward through insider trading, lawsuits and even an armed home invasion, and you have one of the craziest series of events in Canadian corporate history.

BP

The story of BP proves that some companies can inexplicably emerge out the other side of even the most dreadful environmental disasters. We’re discussing, of course, the laundry list of accidents and leaks that have occurred under the watch of BP. There was the Texas City Refinery Explosion of 2005 that killed 15 workers and injured nearly 200 others. BP was also taken to task five years later for the leaking of multiple dangerous chemicals from that same Texas City refinery. Then there was the Prudhoe Bay oil spill of 2006, which dumped over 200,000 gallons of oil into the Arctic Ocean. Wait, there’s more. Deepwater Horizon, anyone? This was yet another oil spill that wreaked havoc on the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.

Palantir Technologies

Natural disasters aren’t the only violations associated with major international companies. Palantir Technologies is in the business of software, as well as analyzing public data. Specifically, Palantir has come under public scrutiny, thanks to their level of involvement with America’s Department of Homeland Security and their alleged cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a.k.a. ICE. The company’s CEO, Alex Karp, downplayed the level of involvement between Palantir and ICE, particularly with regards to deportation. However, Palantir was later singled out by Amnesty International in 2020, for their lack of research into human rights violations during their partnership with the agency.

Massey Energy

The coal industry continues to be a talking point within the United States’ national economy, with many troubling, historical examples of misconduct. Massey Energy Company was once a mainstay in U.S. states like Kentucky and West Virginia, but this success didn’t come without cost. For starters, there was the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster of 2010, that cost the lives of 29 miners. This was just one example of Massey’s recklessness in the coal industry, which saw the company consistently putting production successes over worker safety. A year after Upper Big Branch, Massey was fined an astonishing ten million dollars by the Mine Safety and Health Administration, and it was sold off soon afterwards, to Alpha Natural Resources.

ExxonMobil

These days, the subject of climate change is one that’s discussed on an international level. That said, ExxonMobil’s decision to conduct research into the subject back in the 1970s and ‘80s seems, on the surface, to be a commendable idea. However, what actually was going down proved to be far more sinister. ExxonMobil actively worked to play down all of the results uncovered by their groups of scientists. This included intentionally spreading misinformation with regards to the severity of climate change, while also working to slow down U.S. involvement with taking a proactive stance on the crisis, within the world stage.

Monsanto

Monsanto may no longer exist as an independent company today, but its parent company, Bayer, has its own fair share of historical controversy. The German-based pharmaceutical giant was responsible for developing the gas chamber chemical, Zyklon-B, during World War II. In more recent years, the aforementioned Monsanto was involved in numerous lawsuits over the years. Specifically, Monsanto was aligned with Dow in the development of Agent Orange and other chemicals, like Dioxin. Then, there was the controversy with RoundUp, a popular pesticide that was found to harbor carcinogenic chemicals. The list here with Monsanto honestly goes on and on.

FIFA

The controversy and scandal surrounding FIFA is one of the worst kept secrets in the sports world. This is due to the organization’s almost impressive reputation for corruption. FIFA’s history with bribery finally came to a head in 2015, when 18 members of the organization were indicted for their alleged actions involving wire fraud and money laundering. FIFA’s control over the World Cup (and where it’s held) has always served as a source of controversy, but the 2022 games were a bit different. Specifically, the host country of Qatar, their alleged abuses of migrant workers and alleged human rights violations all reflected back upon FIFA and their systemic abuses of power.

Enron

The Enron Scandal was one of the largest financial scandals of all time, and it both shocked and devastated everyone from Wall Street to Main Street. The former energy company was front-and-center at a scandal that fraudulently inflated Enron’s revenue stream to the tune of billions of dollars. Indictments, evidence tampering and prison sentences were all part of The Enron Scandal, while simple employees saw 401k plans that they had counted on for their security being manipulated and mismanaged. It was a horrific breach of trust, and a truly shameful moment within the history of American business.

Triangle Shirtwaist Company

The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire may have occurred in 1911, but it’s important that we never forget this NYC tragedy. Young garment workers, many barely out of their teens, lost their lives as a result of this fire. And it didn’t have to be this way. The Triangle Shirtwaist Company had the doors to stairwells locked, partially as a means of preventing unapproved break time. It’s unclear whether or not a discarded cigarette or mechanical failure started the fire, but this mattered little to those who were unable to escape. Over sixty employees jumped to their deaths in efforts to break free from the fire. While Triangle’s owners were indicted for manslaughter, they were acquitted, but later found guilty of wrongful death in a civil suit.