McAfee Picks Stephanie Fried as CMO to Show It's More Than An Antivirus Tool

McAfee has appointed ex-Fandom marketer Stephanie Fried as executive vp and chief marketing officer (CMO), with a remit to show how the brand has evolved beyond its antivirus roots. If you've ever owned a Dell or HP computer, the odds are high you've encountered McAfee, the 37-year-old brand best known for its virus protection tools that are pre-loaded on many PCs. While that original software might be what the business is primarily associated with, it has expanded in the last decade to offer a range of privacy, identity, and security tools for people online. Fried's job will be to communicate that. "There's a lot of misconceptions about McAfee, and what it does and how it adds value," Fried told ADWEEK. "Everyone knows that they have McAfee, they trust the brand, but they don't understand the suite of solutions." Common misunderstandings among consumers include that McAfee is a publicly owned or B2B business, said Fried. However, the biggest and first one she'll clear up is that it's "just [an] antivirus" tool. "We actually have a full suite of solutions," explained Fried, including an AI deepfake detector tool that alerts users within seconds if a video has AI-generated audio and scam detectors that identify sketchy emails. Fried will lead global marketing and communication efforts, reporting to Craig Boundy, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of McAfee. To be part of a business that offers the tools to protect customers from the myriad of complex security issues that can befall them online drew Fried to the new role, she said. The brand's own data recently found 59% of people in the U.S. have fallen victim to an online scam or know someone who has, with 87% of those affected losing money—an average loss of $1,366. "It's a very difficult time to be a digital consumer," she said, revealing that her own credit card data was recently stolen. "My grandmother was scammed too. She's 95 years old. There are so many different and increasing ways that people can scam you online, and AI has made it 1,000 times worse." Fried started at McAfee on March 10. Lessons from Fandom With 20 years of experience in marketing, research, and analytics, Fried has held senior leadership roles at Condé Nast, Discovery Communications, Vevo, and NBC Universal. At Condé Nast, she led marketing, research, and analytics for brands including The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, and Vogue, growing digital audiences and increasing engagement year over year. In her most recent role as CMO of fan-generated wiki platform Fandom, she led marketing efforts for brands including TV Guide, Metacritic, and GameSpot. During her tenure, Fandom boosted its audience to around 350 million monthly visitors. "The challenge with that business was, 'how do we better let people know that they're with Fandom, and develop more products and tools for them to get more out of their own fandom, to keep them around and to keep them coming back?'" she said. "McAfee is very similar in that regard. The difference is, McAfee already has a lot of additional products and features to help people protect themselves online. People just don't necessarily understand all of those well enough." Though she's early to the role, she said she'd communicate this message through a more diverse range of channels than McAfee is currently using, including owned social, earned social, and creator partnerships. She said "simple and consistent" messaging would also be important in showcasing the company's evolution to customers and bringing the brand to the forefront. "Stephanie is a dynamic leader with a sharp instinct for what drives brand engagement and business growth," said McAfee CEO Boundy. He added: "Her expertise in data-driven marketing, consumer insights, and digital transformation will be critical as we sharpen our focus on delivering the best possible experience for our customers. Her leadership will be instrumental in driving consumer trust, accelerating growth, and making online protection accessible and engaging for everyone."

Leadership & Talent

McAfee Picks Stephanie Fried as CMO to Show It's More Than An Antivirus Tool

The marketer joins from Fandom with a remit to showcase its range of online security tools

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