With the global proliferation of ESG principles, corporate ESG “greenwashing”—defined as the strategic use of false, selective, or exaggerated disclosures to project a public image superior to actual performance—has garnered significant attention from both academia and practitioners. Drawing on the qualitative characteristics of accounting information, this paper constructs a novel classification framework for ESG “greenwashing”. It delineates its manifestations across six dimensions: relevance, faithful representation, comparability, verifiability, timeliness, and understandability, and systematically reviews methods for their identification and measurement. Furthermore, employing a cost-benefit analysis framework, this paper investigates the intrinsic motives and external incentives for “greenwashing” from the perspectives of multiple stakeholders, including regulators, investors, managers, and consumers. It points out that while a firm may derive short-term benefits from such behavior, it ultimately entails negative consequences for the firm, social governance, and capital markets. On this basis, this paper systematically elucidates mechanisms for mitigating “greenwashing” through the lenses of internal and external governance. The study provides an integrated analytical framework for identifying and governing ESG “greenwashing” and outlines avenues for future research regarding measurement methodologies, determinants, and governance paths.