South Carolina Launches Free Cybersecurity Pilot for Rural Hospitals

The initiative aims to identify devices and technologies used in critical care settings, strengthen hospital network security, and deploy backup technologies to help maintain care during cyber incidents.

South Carolina has launched a six-month cybersecurity pilot program to strengthen rural hospitals’ defenses against cyberattacks, with technology companies providing support at no cost to participating facilities.

Project Lifeline 250 was announced Monday by South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster and White House National Cyber Director Sean Cairncross. The initiative aims to identify devices and technologies used in critical care settings, strengthen hospital network security, and deploy backup technologies to help maintain care during cyber incidents.

The program will also evaluate cybersecurity tools that could be scaled nationwide. The governor’s office said participating rural hospitals would receive the support free of charge.

“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 in the announcement.

The initiative will identify high-risk and legacy devices, replace vulnerable equipment where needed and deploy physical backup devices to help hospitals continue providing critical care following an initial cyber incident, Cairncross said.

The announcement did not specify the number or names of participating hospitals. The launch event was held at Newberry Health Hospital, an independent, 90-bed acute care facility.

Technology Companies to Support Pilot

Microsoft, Cisco, Cyera, Trellix, Zscaler and Abnormal AI have said they plan to participate in the pilot.

Microsoft President of U.S. Public Sector Industries Chris Barry said the company would contribute experience gained from supporting more than 870 rural hospitals across the country. By early 2025, more than 550 rural hospitals nationwide had received free or low-cost cybersecurity support from Microsoft through a separate rural health program.

Trellix will contribute agentic artificial intelligence capabilities to help automate threat detection and response, according to Bill Thorn, the company’s public sector chief technology officer.

Abnormal AI will provide its automated Behavioral Security Platform to help protect hospitals against phishing attempts.

Nationwide Cybersecurity Expansion Under Consideration

Project Lifeline 250 follows Project Watershed 250, a similar public-private initiative launched in Texas over the summer to explore cybersecurity protections for critical water infrastructure.

Officials intend to use the South Carolina pilot to assess which technologies can be deployed more widely to protect healthcare facilities and maintain essential services during cyberattacks.

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