Title	HSBC DEEP FRAUD
Brand	HSBC
Product/Service	CYBER-SECURITY
Category	C02. Use of Social in a PR campaign
Entrant	WEBER SHANDWICK London, UNITED KINGDOM
Idea Creation	WEBER SHANDWICK London, UNITED KINGDOM
PR	WEBER SHANDWICK London, UNITED KINGDOM
Production	WEBER SHANDWICK London, UNITED KINGDOM

Name	Company	Position
James Nester	Weber Shandwick	Executive Creative Director
Luke Walker	Weber Shandwick	Creative Director
Helen Bennett	Weber Shandwick	Managing Director
Jamie Inman	Weber Shandwick	Managing Director, Planning
Violette Verite	Weber Shandwick	Director
Angus Baillie	Weber Shandwick	Associate
Olivia McCulla	Weber Shandwick	Account Director
David Schneider	That Lot	Executive Creative Director
Simon Cooper	That Lot	Associate Creative Director
Dom Coddington	That Lot	Senior After Effects Editor
Sam Latham	That Lot	Senior After Effects Editor
Ben Forder	That Lot	Head of Video
Ciara O'Grady	That Lot	Post Production Manager
Freddie Ward	That Lot	Editor
Stuart Duffy	That Lot	Producer
Maria Boud	That Lot	Producer
Jordan Crankshaw	That Lot	Production Assistant
Amber Weedon	That Lot	Video Creative
Fraser McHale	That Lot	Junior Editor
Alex Wilson-Thame	That Lot	Sound Design
Tomas Diaz	That Lot	After Effects Editor
Tom Alex-Helm	That Lot	Video Intern
Klein Borrill	That Lot	Head of Design
David Cottam	That Lot	Senior Designer
Alastair Flower	That Lot	Account Director
Rebeka Alexander	That Lot	Account Manager

Why is this work relevant for PR?

HSBC UK managed to cut through the shopping frenzy of Cyber Monday to alert - then educate - the British public about the dangers of online fraud. In a time of declining trust, a campaign based on ‘fake news’ was a brave move – both for a leading bank and for trusted celebrity Rachel Riley. But it worked. Posts on HSBC UK’s social channels alone drove over 73 million impressions, the campaign videos gathered over 14.2 million views, and the news made national and global headlines. Members of Parliament, fraud organisations and regional police forces applauded the initiative.

Background

HSBC UK, along with the rest of the international banking sector, is under significant pressure to tackle the issue on online fraud. Online fraud costs the UK £10.9bn per year and is cited as a key concern of consumers. Yet the typical consumer’s understanding of the increasingly sophisticated methods being used by fraudsters is low. With fraud dramatically peaking in the run-up to Christmas, HSBC UK needed to engage and educate consumers on the issue. The key challenge was to highlight the increasing sophistication of online fraudsters while avoiding accusations of scaremongering. Driving awareness of the issue through social media was critical to reach consumers online but capturing attention through social is challenging at the best of times, let alone when trying to drive awareness of an issue most consumers would prefer not to think about. Especially when their mind is focussed on scooping up bargains in time for Christmas.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

It’s harder than ever to know if someone really is who they say they are, online. We paired ‘deep fake’ style technology with a much-loved celebrity to prove it. And we used one of the most trustworthy UK celebrities of them all. Rachel Riley is a national treasure, famed for her extraordinary maths prowess on daytime TV show Countdown. Yet in the run-up to Cyber Monday, a video appeared on social channels where she confessed to being “bad at maths” and having the answers fed via earpiece. 24 hours later, after the inevitable explosion of attention, HSBC reassured the nation that this had been a ‘deep fake’ style video to make an important point at a time when British consumers are vulnerable. Every viewer was retargeted with educational videos from Rachel to help them stay safe, next time they were online.

Describe the PR strategy (30% of vote)

We identified Cyber Monday as the highest risk moment - a time when consumers drop their guard in haste to pick up a great deal. Consumers also have an outdated model of fraud, where scams look fake - phishing emails littered with spelling mistakes. In the heart of the frenzy, we needed an idea that would grab attention, demonstrate the sophistication of fraudsters and educate consumers on how to stay safe online. If there’s someone the Cyber Monday online shopper trusts online, it is the celebrity. Our audience lives in a world that blurs the line between celebrity and retail, where those they follow directly influence their buying behaviours. We'd tap the world of celebrity to prove that absolutely anyone might not be who they say they are. Then we would use retargeting promoted social posts to continue their education, the next times they're online.

Describe the PR execution (20% of vote)

At the start of Christmas fraud ‘primetime’, with Rachel’s blessing, we used her Twitter and Instagram channels to post the surprising confession. Fans immediately jumped on the confession, leading to widespread speculation. We protected the authenticity of the confession allowing the post to live organically – a strategy which paid off as the consternation of Rachel’s followers ignited mainstream interest in the confession. After a nail-biting 24 hours, HSBC revealed all. On Sunday 26th November, the eve of Cyber Monday, a video was posted to their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram channels showing how we had used ‘deep fake’ style technology – tracking and manipulating facial movements and syncing with a vocal impressionist – in order to alert consumers to the very real dangers of digital fraud. Through retargeting, every viewer received two lessons from Rachel next time they went onto Twitter or Facebook, with tips on how to stay secure.

List the results (30% of vote)

In the midst of the online buying frenzy, the nation took note. With over 14 million views of the campaign videos on HSBC’s Facebook and Twitter channels, the reveal video is the most retweeted post by HSBC ever and was the top tweet in Twitter’s Cyber Monday trend. The campaign created over 88 million social impressions and started over 2,400 conversations on Twitter alone. It generated national and global news coverage with a reach of 364 million; national hits included the Daily Express, the Daily Mail and Independent, Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch and Irish morning TV show Ireland AM in the UK - plus a surprising level of attention in the Deep Fake from Russian media. Rachel’s ‘Confession’ secured 52,000 views in the first 30 minutes alone. So far, its had over 691,000 organic views. The reveal video generated over 5.2 million views on HSBC UK channels (Facebook & Twitter) and an additional 110,000 organic views on Rachel’s Instagram channel. While the educational videos generated over 7.2 million video views on HSBC UK channels. The initiative was applauded by celebrities, Members of Parliament, regional police forces and fraud organisations including Crimestoppers and the Financial Services Compensation Scheme and CIFAs. HSBC UK succeeded in making sure the risks of digital fraud were front of mind for consumers, exactly when Christmas shopping and the race for festive bargains peaked.