Institutional corruption is the phenomenon in public bodies of placing the protection of reputation above fidelity to the truth, especially in the context of an independent or public inquiry.

Institutional corruption is differentiated from corruption by the institution's willingness to frustrate or slow the work of independent formal inquiries, even after official reports and documentation recognise that such an inquiry is necessary.

Institutional corruption is not limited to national-scale institutions. It can be as small as a single recommendation of a report rejected because an institution wishes not to admit meaningful change, or the misreporting of statistics in the Stafford Hospital scandal.