Phishing with Cookies
A stunt that hand-delivered QR-coded cookies to journalists and influencers, demonstrating both the risk and Mobileiron's ability to defend against a new type of cyberattack. A 97% scan rate, breakthrough media placements, a 25% spike in product trials, and Gold at the PRovoke Sabre and NYX Marcom Awards.
MobileIron · 2020 · 
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The challenge
MobileIron was entering a crowded market with genuinely superior technology, and nobody knew it. When it launched new phishing protections, it was going head-to-head with Google and Proofpoint - established names in enterprise security. The problem wasn’t the product. MobileIron Threat Defense protected against the new generation of phishing attacks that everyone else missed: QR codes, NFC tags, and malicious links delivered via social media and messaging apps. The problem was cut-through. The opportunity was a practical demonstration.
A press release announcing better phishing protection would disappear into the noise. The campaign needed to do something journalists would talk about and make the point without saying a word.
What I did
I led strategy, creative direction, and tracked campaign impact and attribution, turning a message into bottom line impact for Mobileiron.
We went phishing ourselves.
Journalists, analysts, and influencers received boxes of custom-baked cookies — each one iced with a QR code and nothing else. No explanation. No brand message. Scan the cookie, see what happens. The QR code led to a landing page that reframed the moment: “Uh oh. Your phishing defences have crumbled.” — and introduced MobileIron Threat Defense as the solution for the attacks nobody else was protecting against.
The campaign paired the stunt with a targeted media relations program, placing the story in key business, technology and security publications to ensure the moment had legs beyond the initial delivery.
The results
- 97% QR scan rate — an overwhelming majority of recipients scanned immediately
- Media placements in business, tech and security publications, including HelpNet Security, Threat Post, and Healthcare Global
- 25% increase in product trials during the campaign period — the highest in the quarter
- 43% increase in Annual Recurring Revenue pipeline versus the prior period
- Gold, NYX Marcom Awards 2021
- Sabre Award 2021
The campaign demonstrated that the most effective way to explain a threat is to make people feel it — and that a creative idea executed with precision can move commercial metrics, not just earn coverage.