Typically, in these cases, malicious compliance is when you know what you’re doing will lead to a less efficient, more chaotic outcome for your team, but your preferred alternatives got rejected by your boss. If your horrible boss has a new workflow that is doomed to fail, you follow it because you had no choice, for example.
Article source: https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/malicious-compliance-might-be-the-best-way-to-deal-with-a-toxic-boss_uk_69d8df86e4b0ccb589ec5dcf