Equifax And HNC Software Form Strategic Alliance

ATLANTA, August 26, 1997-- Equifax and HNC Software today announced a global long-term strategic alliance to jointly develop and market new products to the financial services, retail and electronic commerce industries. The complementary technological and information expertise of the two business information services powerhouses will be applied across both companies, greatly expanding their array of advanced information and processing solutions.

Thomas F. Chapman, Equifax president and chief operating officer, said, "The synergy between our two companies is tremendous -- leveraging information and technology to meet customer needs. Equifax customers expect total solutions and they get them. With the integration of HNC products and technologies, the creation of powerful business solutions will be even faster, more comprehensive and more efficient than ever before. When two leaders in technology join forces, it's a new era in global commerce."

Equifax and HNC are planning the deployment of HNC products and technology at Equifax's global locations to bring the best information and decision processing solutions to the marketplace.

• HNC products will be deployed and integrated into the Equifax credit information and card processing system.
• HNC technology will be installed in Equifax operations to enhance processing; speed up development, delivery and customer use of new models; and improve decision system capabilities.
• Equifax Card Solutions software will incorporate HNC fraud and risk management capabilities to enhance its features and provide immediate value to customers.
• Equifax and HNC will work jointly to develop new products and services, combining the extremely predictive components of the consumer credit file with the best information and decision processing technology available, resulting in new and unique offerings to the marketplace.
• Equifax and HNC will respond jointly to customer requests for new solutions.

Both companies are committed to a long-term alliance for the benefit of their customers. Robert L. North, president, HNC Software, said, "This alliance gives each of us a bridge to cross new frontiers in service to customers, not only in the credit information and decisioning field, but also in such areas as target marketing and electronic commerce over the Internet. It's a strategic fit that will benefit both companies."

"Bob North and I envision our alliance as a long term relationship," added Chapman. "In the short term, we will focus on integrating the existing technologies and products of both companies to provide enhanced offerings. Additionally, we've already begun work on developing new products and services for our global customers," he said.

Headquartered in San Diego, Calif., HNC Software Inc. (NASDAQ: HNCS) is a world leader in the application of neural network technology in client/server environments. The company develops, markets, integrates and supports advanced decision software based on computational intelligence. HNC provides practical solutions in the areas of payment systems, financial services, retail, insurance information, data mining and Internet commerce.

Equifax is a world leader in providing financial information and processing solutions, with global operations in consumer and commercial credit information services, payment services, software, modeling, analytics and consulting and direct-to-consumer services. The company serves many industries including banking, finance, retail, telecommunications, utilities and health care. Equifax was founded in 1899 in Atlanta and today has 10,000 employees around the world. It operates globally in 17 countries, with sales in 40 countries. Equifax (NYSE: EFX) revenues for the 12 months ended June 30, 1997, were just under $1.3 billion.