{"success":true,"data":{"pressRelease":{"id":"139072","rtpr_id":"nBw89mGqLa-20260909","ticker":"FICO","exchange":"NYSE","all_tickers":["FICO"],"title":"FICO Educational Analytics Challenge Returns for Fourth Year, Tasking Students with Building AI to Detect Cyber Attacks","author":"Business Wire","published_at":"2026-09-09T12:00:02.425Z","article_body":"FICO Educational Analytics Challenge Returns for Fourth Year, Tasking Students\nwith Building AI to Detect Cyber Attacks\n\nIn partnership with the HBCU Data Science Consortium, the Analytics Challenge\nwill return to Alabama A&M University, Dillard University, Morehouse\nCollege and Fayetteville State University this fall\n\nGlobal analytics software leader FICO\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2F&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=FICO&index=1&md5=f736b02c25eac237a68178dfb5d57554)\n(NYSE: FICO) announced its FICO Educational Analytics Challenge\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen%2Ffeac&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=FICO+Educational+Analytics+Challenge&index=2&md5=a4a30a999dd878ae28091ed8b3fe04cd)\nis returning for a fourth year, providing students at Historically Black\nColleges and Universities (HBCUs) direct, practical exposure to the work of\nprofessional data scientists. The program pairs classroom theory with hands-on\nAI model-building, giving students real skills training they can carry into a\ncareer. For this fall semester, FICO welcomes back Alabama A&M University,\nDillard University, Morehouse College and Fayetteville State University. The\nprogram is led by FICO’s Chief Analytics Officer, Dr. Scott Zoldi, and\nFICO’s team of data scientists who will spearhead weekly instruction and\nmentor participants throughout the semester.\n\nIn its fourth year, the Fall 2026 program challenges students to address\ncybersecurity vulnerabilities by designing and training their own machine\nlearning systems capable of spotting network intrusions before they cause\ndamage. Participants will study various types of intrusion, ranging from\ndenial-of-service attacks and botnets to ransomware and crypto mining, before\napplying their learnings and models to real-world cybersecurity scenarios.\nThrough this hands-on approach, FICO is helping cultivate the\nintrusion-detection expertise the data science field will increasingly depend\non. FICO has spent decades pioneering Responsible AI models that today's\nfinancial institutions rely on to prevent cybercrimes. In addition to hands-on\nlearning and advanced curriculum, FICO provides financial grants to support\nstudents at participating universities.\n\n\"The Analytics Challenge has pushed our students to think critically about how\nAI models are built and the importance of applying AI responsibly,\" said\nDennis Sigur Jr., assistant professor of computer science at Dillard\nUniversity. “This fall, our students are excited to apply real-world skills\nthat will prepare them for meaningful careers in analytics and data science\nwhile building solutions that address a cybersecurity threat that only\ncontinues to grow.”\n\n“As cyber threats become more sophisticated, so must the people building the\nsystems that defend against them,” said Dr. Zoldi. “Through this program,\nstudents learn and design AI models that must make decisions on first seen and\nevolving cyber-attacks with sophisticated unsupervised AI. It’s the kind of\nhands-on, high-stakes practical work that prepares them for a career in\nanalytics, and we’re proud to help guide them through it and influence data\nscience curriculum at the same time.”\n\nThe HBCU Data Science Consortium (DSC) is a collaboration of leaders in\nacademia, industry and government formed to address today's data challenges.\nFICO's partnership with the DSC builds on existing work with Dr. Velma Latson,\nco-executive director of the DSC. Through this partnership, FICO data\nscientists mentor students and support the development of university analytics\ncurricula at institutions without formal data science programs. The goal is to\nstrengthen the pipeline of diverse data science talent entering the field,\nwhile giving students hands on experience in Responsible AI and real-world\nanalytics they can carry into their careers.\n\n\"FICO continues to be on the forefront of innovation and technology\nadvancements,\" said Dr. Latson. \"As a professor and now through my work with\nthe DSC, I have the unique opportunity to help other universities adopt the\nprogram and witness the impact firsthand, as I have the last three years. The\nprogram provides an invaluable opportunity for students to gain hands-on\nexperience with AI, as well as for faculty to identify and fill gaps in data\nscience curriculum and help ready their students for the workforce.\"\n\nFICO also provides resources for students regarding workforce and career\ndevelopment.\n\nSolving diverse problems demands a field of practitioners as diverse as the\ndata itself. FICO remains a proud participant in the HBCU Partnership\nChallenge, an initiative of the Bipartisan Historically Black Colleges and\nUniversities Caucus led by Congresswoman Alma Adams and Congressman French\nHill. Through the HBCU Partnership Challenge, FICO continues to build\nstrategic, lasting relationships with HBCUs while broadening the talent\npipeline into the data science industry.\n\nTo learn more about the FICO Educational Analytics Challenge, including how to\nget involved, visit: https://www.fico.com/en/feac\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen%2Ffeac&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen%2Ffeac&index=3&md5=3ee496062b56fb407f549d475e6c77e9)\n\nAbout FICO\n\nFICO (NYSE: FICO) powers decisions that help people and businesses around the\nworld prosper. Founded in 1956, the company is a pioneer in the use of\npredictive analytics and data science to improve operational decisions. FICO\nholds more than 200 U.S. and foreign patents on technologies that increase\nprofitability, customer satisfaction and growth for businesses in financial\nservices, insurance, telecommunications, health care, retail and many other\nindustries. Using FICO solutions, businesses in more than 80 countries do\neverything from protecting 4 billion payment cards from fraud, to improving\nfinancial inclusion, to increasing supply chain resiliency. The FICO® Score,\nused by 90% of top U.S. lenders, is the standard measure of consumer credit\nrisk in the U.S. and has been made available in over 40 other countries,\nimproving risk management, credit access and transparency.\n\nLearn more at https://www.fico.com/en\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen&index=4&md5=c5b39fa7619f6451db12e17f94373762)\n\nJoin the conversation at https://x.com/FICO_corp\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fx.com%2FFICO_corp&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fx.com%2FFICO_corp&index=5&md5=d86be674235c4ea0732a096c229f691d)\n& https://www.fico.com/blogs/\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fblogs%2F&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fblogs%2F&index=6&md5=7b0bedb88bd8b39a2c9eb1b4dd0cc161)\n\nFor FICO news and media resources, visit https://www.fico.com/en/newsroom\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen%2Fnewsroom&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen%2Fnewsroom&index=7&md5=4f8af6914b3f7bc13eff0f0bd33b4ab3)\n\nFICO is a registered trademark of Fair Isaac Corporation in the U.S. and other\ncountries.\n\n\n\nView source version on businesswire.com:\nhttps://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260909432469/en/\n(https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260909432469/en/)\n\npress@fico.com (mailto:press@fico.com)\n\n\nCopyright Business Wire 2026","article_body_html":"","raw_payload":{"data":{"id":"nBw89mGqLa-20260909","title":"FICO Educational Analytics Challenge Returns for Fourth Year, Tasking Students with Building AI to Detect Cyber Attacks","author":"Business Wire","ticker":"FICO","created":"2026-09-09T12:00:02.425Z","tickers":["FICO"],"exchange":"NYSE","article_body":"FICO Educational Analytics Challenge Returns for Fourth Year, Tasking Students\nwith Building AI to Detect Cyber Attacks\n\nIn partnership with the HBCU Data Science Consortium, the Analytics Challenge\nwill return to Alabama A&M University, Dillard University, Morehouse\nCollege and Fayetteville State University this fall\n\nGlobal analytics software leader FICO\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2F&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=FICO&index=1&md5=f736b02c25eac237a68178dfb5d57554)\n(NYSE: FICO) announced its FICO Educational Analytics Challenge\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen%2Ffeac&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=FICO+Educational+Analytics+Challenge&index=2&md5=a4a30a999dd878ae28091ed8b3fe04cd)\nis returning for a fourth year, providing students at Historically Black\nColleges and Universities (HBCUs) direct, practical exposure to the work of\nprofessional data scientists. The program pairs classroom theory with hands-on\nAI model-building, giving students real skills training they can carry into a\ncareer. For this fall semester, FICO welcomes back Alabama A&M University,\nDillard University, Morehouse College and Fayetteville State University. The\nprogram is led by FICO’s Chief Analytics Officer, Dr. Scott Zoldi, and\nFICO’s team of data scientists who will spearhead weekly instruction and\nmentor participants throughout the semester.\n\nIn its fourth year, the Fall 2026 program challenges students to address\ncybersecurity vulnerabilities by designing and training their own machine\nlearning systems capable of spotting network intrusions before they cause\ndamage. Participants will study various types of intrusion, ranging from\ndenial-of-service attacks and botnets to ransomware and crypto mining, before\napplying their learnings and models to real-world cybersecurity scenarios.\nThrough this hands-on approach, FICO is helping cultivate the\nintrusion-detection expertise the data science field will increasingly depend\non. FICO has spent decades pioneering Responsible AI models that today's\nfinancial institutions rely on to prevent cybercrimes. In addition to hands-on\nlearning and advanced curriculum, FICO provides financial grants to support\nstudents at participating universities.\n\n\"The Analytics Challenge has pushed our students to think critically about how\nAI models are built and the importance of applying AI responsibly,\" said\nDennis Sigur Jr., assistant professor of computer science at Dillard\nUniversity. “This fall, our students are excited to apply real-world skills\nthat will prepare them for meaningful careers in analytics and data science\nwhile building solutions that address a cybersecurity threat that only\ncontinues to grow.”\n\n“As cyber threats become more sophisticated, so must the people building the\nsystems that defend against them,” said Dr. Zoldi. “Through this program,\nstudents learn and design AI models that must make decisions on first seen and\nevolving cyber-attacks with sophisticated unsupervised AI. It’s the kind of\nhands-on, high-stakes practical work that prepares them for a career in\nanalytics, and we’re proud to help guide them through it and influence data\nscience curriculum at the same time.”\n\nThe HBCU Data Science Consortium (DSC) is a collaboration of leaders in\nacademia, industry and government formed to address today's data challenges.\nFICO's partnership with the DSC builds on existing work with Dr. Velma Latson,\nco-executive director of the DSC. Through this partnership, FICO data\nscientists mentor students and support the development of university analytics\ncurricula at institutions without formal data science programs. The goal is to\nstrengthen the pipeline of diverse data science talent entering the field,\nwhile giving students hands on experience in Responsible AI and real-world\nanalytics they can carry into their careers.\n\n\"FICO continues to be on the forefront of innovation and technology\nadvancements,\" said Dr. Latson. \"As a professor and now through my work with\nthe DSC, I have the unique opportunity to help other universities adopt the\nprogram and witness the impact firsthand, as I have the last three years. The\nprogram provides an invaluable opportunity for students to gain hands-on\nexperience with AI, as well as for faculty to identify and fill gaps in data\nscience curriculum and help ready their students for the workforce.\"\n\nFICO also provides resources for students regarding workforce and career\ndevelopment.\n\nSolving diverse problems demands a field of practitioners as diverse as the\ndata itself. FICO remains a proud participant in the HBCU Partnership\nChallenge, an initiative of the Bipartisan Historically Black Colleges and\nUniversities Caucus led by Congresswoman Alma Adams and Congressman French\nHill. Through the HBCU Partnership Challenge, FICO continues to build\nstrategic, lasting relationships with HBCUs while broadening the talent\npipeline into the data science industry.\n\nTo learn more about the FICO Educational Analytics Challenge, including how to\nget involved, visit: https://www.fico.com/en/feac\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen%2Ffeac&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen%2Ffeac&index=3&md5=3ee496062b56fb407f549d475e6c77e9)\n\nAbout FICO\n\nFICO (NYSE: FICO) powers decisions that help people and businesses around the\nworld prosper. Founded in 1956, the company is a pioneer in the use of\npredictive analytics and data science to improve operational decisions. FICO\nholds more than 200 U.S. and foreign patents on technologies that increase\nprofitability, customer satisfaction and growth for businesses in financial\nservices, insurance, telecommunications, health care, retail and many other\nindustries. Using FICO solutions, businesses in more than 80 countries do\neverything from protecting 4 billion payment cards from fraud, to improving\nfinancial inclusion, to increasing supply chain resiliency. The FICO® Score,\nused by 90% of top U.S. lenders, is the standard measure of consumer credit\nrisk in the U.S. and has been made available in over 40 other countries,\nimproving risk management, credit access and transparency.\n\nLearn more at https://www.fico.com/en\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen&index=4&md5=c5b39fa7619f6451db12e17f94373762)\n\nJoin the conversation at https://x.com/FICO_corp\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fx.com%2FFICO_corp&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fx.com%2FFICO_corp&index=5&md5=d86be674235c4ea0732a096c229f691d)\n& https://www.fico.com/blogs/\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fblogs%2F&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fblogs%2F&index=6&md5=7b0bedb88bd8b39a2c9eb1b4dd0cc161)\n\nFor FICO news and media resources, visit https://www.fico.com/en/newsroom\n(https://cts.businesswire.com/ct/CT?id=smartlink&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen%2Fnewsroom&esheet=54600580&newsitemid=20260909432469&lan=en-US&anchor=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.fico.com%2Fen%2Fnewsroom&index=7&md5=4f8af6914b3f7bc13eff0f0bd33b4ab3)\n\nFICO is a registered trademark of Fair Isaac Corporation in the U.S. and other\ncountries.\n\n\n\nView source version on businesswire.com:\nhttps://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260909432469/en/\n(https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260909432469/en/)\n\npress@fico.com (mailto:press@fico.com)\n\n\nCopyright Business Wire 2026"},"type":"article","timestamp":"2026-09-09T12:00:02.551335561Z","server_sent_at_ms":1788955202551},"received_at":"2026-09-09T12:00:02.603Z","source_url":"https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260909432469/en/"},"analysis":{"id":"127909","press_release_id":"139072","analysis_json":{"industry":{"label":"Software","sector":"Information Technology"},"redFlags":[],"eventType":"operations_update","narrative":"FICO's Educational Analytics Challenge is returning for a fourth year, tasking students at four HBCUs with designing and training machine learning systems that detect network intrusions, spanning denial-of-service attacks, botnets, ransomware and crypto mining.\n\nThe Fall 2026 program runs at Alabama A&M University, Dillard University, Morehouse College and Fayetteville State University, with weekly instruction led by Chief Analytics Officer Dr. Scott Zoldi and FICO's data science team in partnership with the HBCU Data Science Consortium.\n\nThe release is a talent-pipeline and branding announcement; FICO also provides curriculum support and financial grants to students, but no dollar amounts or other financial figures are disclosed.","sentiment":"neutral","agentHooks":{"shouldPost":false,"suggestedAngle":"CSR / talent-pipeline story with no financial impact — suppress from trading alerts."},"keyFigures":{"customDimensions":{"fall_term":"Fall 2026","program_year":4,"program_theme":"machine learning models to detect network intrusions and cyber attacks","participating_universities":4}},"quotedText":"As cyber threats become more sophisticated, so must the people building the systems that defend against them","namedEntities":{"people":[{"name":"Dr. Scott Zoldi","role":"Chief Analytics Officer of FICO, program lead"},{"name":"Dennis Sigur Jr.","role":"assistant professor of computer science, Dillard University"},{"name":"Dr. Velma Latson","role":"co-executive director, HBCU Data Science Consortium"},{"name":"Alma Adams","role":"Congresswoman, co-leads HBCU Partnership Challenge"},{"name":"French Hill","role":"Congressman, co-leads HBCU Partnership Challenge"}],"products":["FICO Educational Analytics Challenge","FICO Score"],"companies":[{"name":"Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO)","ticker":"FICO","relationship":"filer"},{"name":"HBCU Data Science Consortium","relationship":"partner"},{"name":"Alabama A&M University","relationship":"participating university"},{"name":"Dillard University","relationship":"participating university"},{"name":"Morehouse College","relationship":"participating university"},{"name":"Fayetteville State University","relationship":"participating university"}],"dollarAmounts":[]},"materialImpact":{"score":1,"reasoning":"Corporate social responsibility / educational program announcement with no financial figures, guidance, contracts, or other economic terms. It supports FICO's talent pipeline and brand but has no measurable near-term impact on results."},"tickerRelevance":{"others":[],"primary":"FICO"},"globalImportance":10,"audienceRelevance":20,"eventTypeSecondary":[],"importanceComponents":{"tickerTier":"large-cap established analytics software","eventGravity":"csr_education_program","issuerAuthored":true,"householdBrandBoost":"FICO Score name recognition adds modest audience interest","financialMateriality":"none disclosed"}},"event_type":"operations_update","event_type_secondary":null,"sentiment":"neutral","material_impact_score":1,"narrative":"FICO's Educational Analytics Challenge is returning for a fourth year, tasking students at four HBCUs with designing and training machine learning systems that detect network intrusions, spanning denial-of-service attacks, botnets, ransomware and crypto mining.\n\nThe Fall 2026 program runs at Alabama A&M University, Dillard University, Morehouse College and Fayetteville State University, with weekly instruction led by Chief Analytics Officer Dr. Scott Zoldi and FICO's data science team in partnership with the HBCU Data Science Consortium.\n\nThe release is a talent-pipeline and branding announcement; FICO also provides curriculum support and financial grants to students, but no dollar amounts or other financial figures are disclosed.","key_figures":{"customDimensions":{"fall_term":"Fall 2026","program_year":4,"program_theme":"machine learning models to detect network intrusions and cyber attacks","participating_universities":4}},"named_entities":{"people":[{"name":"Dr. Scott Zoldi","role":"Chief Analytics Officer of FICO, program lead"},{"name":"Dennis Sigur Jr.","role":"assistant professor of computer science, Dillard University"},{"name":"Dr. Velma Latson","role":"co-executive director, HBCU Data Science Consortium"},{"name":"Alma Adams","role":"Congresswoman, co-leads HBCU Partnership Challenge"},{"name":"French Hill","role":"Congressman, co-leads HBCU Partnership Challenge"}],"products":["FICO Educational Analytics Challenge","FICO Score"],"companies":[{"name":"Fair Isaac Corporation (FICO)","ticker":"FICO","relationship":"filer"},{"name":"HBCU Data Science Consortium","relationship":"partner"},{"name":"Alabama A&M University","relationship":"participating university"},{"name":"Dillard University","relationship":"participating university"},{"name":"Morehouse College","relationship":"participating university"},{"name":"Fayetteville State University","relationship":"participating university"}],"dollarAmounts":[]},"model_name":"glm-5.3-flash","prompt_hash":"sha256:727b4b9429a443af","schema_hash":"sha256:05005c02d9cffac9","created_at":"2026-09-09T12:03:32.003Z","global_importance":10,"audience_relevance":20,"importance_components":{"tickerTier":"large-cap established analytics software","eventGravity":"csr_education_program","issuerAuthored":true,"householdBrandBoost":"FICO Score name recognition adds modest audience interest","financialMateriality":"none disclosed"}},"durationMs":29245,"modelName":"glm-5.3-flash"}}