Abstract After the 2012 Emilia–Romagna (Italy) seismic sequence, oil and gas activities have been accused, mainly through the Internet, of being responsible for triggering/inducing local earthquakes; many people consider this information to be true for three reasons: (1) industry and professionals are unable to explain the matter; (2) authorities are too often driven by research of popular consent; and (3) scientists are usually not trained to deal with people. The consequence has been a silence filled with opposition, protest and experts of everything; spin-doctors have easily become ‘geologists’ thanks to the Internet and once the ‘net’ has promoted them, now it is hard to remove this false label. Words like seismicity, fracking, drilling and subsidence have become common, and used without their correct meaning always being known, in the name of supposed environmental protection and sustainability, and with a precautionary approach to the question to always be applied. A smart use of a few keywords gave a number of spin-doctors the opportunity for fame. Any attempt to give correct information was ‘proclaimed by experts to be in conflict of interest’. The industry needs to improve its communication of awareness and sustainability. Petroleum geologists need to answer questions coming from the community, and they have to accept this challenge by disseminating knowledge in a proper and ethical way.