The CARE Lab’s 6th Annual Social Engineering Competition is officially here — and this year, we’re taking things to the next level.

The 2026 theme is: AI-Enhanced Social Engineering Attacks on a Community-Based Pharmacy  This competition dives deep into how AI, human behavior, and cyber deception collide in everyday community spaces. It’s timely, relevant, and unlike anything we’ve done before.

Who Can Participate?

High school, undergraduate, and graduate students from any discipline who are curious about cybersecurity, psychology, AI, and the art of persuasion.
Whether you’re new to social engineering or building on prior experience, this challenge will stretch your creativity and critical thinking.

What’s New and Exciting For 2026? AI-Enhanced Social Engineering!

Participants will use AI tools responsibly and ethically to enhance their social engineering strategies:

  • Text Generation for personas, pretexts, phishing emails, and vishing scripts
  • Image Generation for realistic persona development
  • Text-to-Speech for synthetic voice creation in vishing attempts (no real voices allowed!) 

This is your chance to explore how attackers leverage AI—and how defenders must adapt. 

Community-Based Pharmacy Scenario

This year’s narrative centers on a fictional local pharmacy, highlighting how small community institutions—often overlooked—can be deeply vulnerable to AI-driven social engineering threats.

Partnership with OWASP Philadelphia

We’re thrilled to collaborate with OWASP Philadelphia this year to bring even deeper expertise, community connection, and industry relevance to the competition.

 Prizes (per track):

1st Place: $1,000
2nd Place: $500

Show your skills. Impress the judges. Walk away with both knowledge and cash.

Key Details

Registration Deadline: February 9, 2026, at 12pm ET
Competition Flyer: See the attached flyer for full details and important information.
Learn more and register today: Visit Competition Page

 Sponsorship

We are currently seeking sponsors for the 2026 competition. Sponsorships help support student prizes, materials, and access for participants across all tracks. If you or your organization are interested in supporting this year’s event, please visit our sponsorship page.

Learn more: Sponsorship Page