Trust is a powerful weapon for retaining audiences and advertisers. It is critical in the online world for media organisations to protect their name from fraudulent use.

Reputation is everything

Media companies earn their reputation. Since its launch in 2009 Daily Maverick has become a trusted and credible news source through the quality, truthfulness, accurate and reliability of its reporting. Operating as an online news outlet for quality long-form journalism and newsletters, Daily Maverick, like all digital businesses, is a potential target for cyber criminals. The illegitimate use of the Daily Maverick name by fraudsters could cause catastrophic reputational and financial damage to the company.

Trusted reporting

Daily Maverick readers need to know they can trust information that carries the Daily Maverick name. Anyone seeking out information from the company’s website or receiving email communication from Daily Maverick in the form of newsletters, news-feeds or request for subscriptions, needs to be able to fully trust that the information they are receiving is the real thing. Daily Maverick’s reputation would be severely undermined if a scam website with the Daily Maverick name, branding and styling but peddling false or misleading information was live. Equally, if a cyber criminal impersonates a Daily Maverick journalist and uses their name to tout misinformation, untruthful and inaccurate reports, or to ask for donations or a subscription then there would be serious reputational and financial damage inflicted. Without trust Daily Maverick cannot sustain their reputation and credibility, drive subscriptions, advertising revenues or audience and readership numbers. All of which are critical to their sustainability.

Sendmarc: Protecting Daily Maverick and its readers from email fraudsters

Daily Maverick called on Sendmarc to make the Daily Maverick identity immune from cyber criminals wanting to hijack the name and impersonate the company. It is imperative that only legitimate communication bearing the Daily Maverick name reaches the inbox of their subscribers, donors and readers. Sendmarc set about ensuring the Daily Maverick name, its use in email communication from the company and its website is fully protected and unable to be used by fraudsters for their illicit gain. Their name is their reputation and key to attracting advertisers and increasing the audience of their content. With cyberattacks a major threat to trust, Daily Maverick wanted to ensure they had the strongest defence possible against fraudsters and ensure their reputation for quality, accurate, truthful reporting could not be compromised.