New pilot program aims to protect South Carolina’s rural hospitals from cyberattacks
October 26, 2026
Gov. Henry McMaster and White House National Cyber Director Sean Cairncross have launched Project Lifeline 250, a joint effort among federal, state and private-sector partners to strengthen cybersecurity at rural hospitals across South Carolina. Participating hospitals will receive the protections at no cost.
The six-month pilot program will pair rural hospitals with American technology companies and cybersecurity resources. The goal is to help hospitals find weaknesses in their systems, fend off cyberattacks and keep providing critical care if an attack does occur.
“Cyber threats are a rising challenge to our nation’s security, and we must remain vigilant to protect the systems our communities depend on,” McMaster said. “Project Lifeline 250 is another important step toward ensuring South Carolina’s rural hospitals have the resources they need to defend against cyberattacks and continue providing critical care.”
McMaster thanked President Donald Trump, the White House and the private-sector partners for their work on the effort.
Cairncross described the initiative as “a six-month, scalable cyber pilot program aimed at securing and strengthening our rural hospitals using cutting-edge American innovation.” He said the program will defend hospital networks, supply physical backup devices so a hospital hit by an attack can keep caring for patients, and identify outdated or high-risk devices that need to be replaced.
The effort brings together the Office of the National Cyber Director, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, the South Carolina Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity program, federal agencies, local governments and private industry.
“South Carolina is not waiting for the next cyber incident to act,” said SLED Chief Mark Keel. “We are identifying risks, bringing partners together, and putting practical solutions in place to better protect the services our citizens depend on.”
McMaster created the SC CIC program in 2017 by executive order to better protect the state’s critical infrastructure from cyber threats. The program coordinates cybersecurity preparedness across key sectors, often through partnerships between government and private companies.
Technology partners in the pilot include Cisco, Cyera, Microsoft, Trellix and Zscaler.
“Every community deserves safe, uninterrupted access to healthcare, yet rural hospitals often face the steepest hurdles in defending against disruptive cyber threats,” said Fran Katsoudas, executive vice president and chief people, policy and purpose officer at Cisco.
Chris Barry, president of U.S. public sector industries at Microsoft, said the company has supported more than 870 rural hospitals nationwide, including some in South Carolina, and will bring that experience to the pilot.
Trellix public sector chief technology officer Bill Thorn said the company will provide artificial intelligence tools that automate threat detection and response, easing the workload on hospital security teams.
“Our goal is simple: to build lasting resilience so that a cyber incident never becomes a delay in patient care,” Thorn said.
Zscaler founder and CEO Jay Chaudhry noted that in rural areas, a single attack on a hospital can cut a community off from its nearest emergency care.
The South Carolina pilot builds on Project Watershed 250, a similar effort in Texas. Officials said the results will help determine which cybersecurity solutions can be expanded to protect infrastructure in communities nationwide.
