> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.cybrsecmedia.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Rilian Brings Agentic AI to Rural Hospital Cybersecurity in White House Pilot - URL: https://www.cybrsecmedia.com/rilian-brings-agentic-ai-to-rural-hospital-cybersecurity-in-white-house-pilot/ - Published: 2026-10-27T13:51:18.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-27T13:52:53.000Z - Description: Rilian joins the White House's Project Lifeline 250 to protect South Carolina rural hospitals, putting its agentic AI approach to critical infrastructure security into practice. - Author: Bill Brenner - Tags: Medical Device Security, Agentic AI, Hospital CYbersecurity, Article Rilian CEO Christian Schnedler recently told CYBR.SEC.Media that agentic AI could transform critical infrastructure cybersecurity by automating threat investigations while keeping humans in control of consequential decisions. Now his company is joining a White House-backed initiative to put that approach to work protecting rural hospitals. Rilian is partnering with the White House Office of the National Cyber Director (ONCD) and South Carolina officials on Project Lifeline 250, a cybersecurity pilot designed to strengthen defenses at rural hospitals. The initiative also involves the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Gov. Henry McMaster and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division's Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity Initiative. The announcement follows Schnedler's recent appearance on [CYBR.HAK.CAST, where he discussed the promise and limitations of agentic AI in critical infrastructure security](https://www.cybrsecmedia.com/agentic-ai-is-coming-to-critical-infrastructure-security-but-autonomy-has-its-limits/). His central argument was that security teams need automation to keep pace with threats, but must retain authority over decisions that could disrupt essential operations. Project Lifeline 250 provides an opportunity to test that approach in healthcare environments where cybersecurity failures can directly affect patient safety. The South Carolina pilot is intended to establish technologies and practices that could eventually be replicated at rural hospitals nationwide. "Rural hospitals are often the only lifeline for miles, and a single cyberattack can shut down emergency rooms, delay surgeries and put patients at risk," Schnedler said. ## Why rural hospitals are a cybersecurity priority The initiative comes amid growing concern about cyberattacks against healthcare organizations and their ability to maintain essential medical services during an incident. According to the FBI's [2025 Internet Crime Complaint Center Annual Report](https://www.ic3.gov/AnnualReport/Reports/2025%5FIC3Report.pdf?ref=cybrsecmedia.com), healthcare and public health was the most frequently targeted critical infrastructure sector among those tracked in the report, with 642 reported cyber incidents. The consequences can be particularly severe for rural communities, where patients may have few alternatives when their local hospital experiences an outage. A recent attack against a community medical center in Falls City, Nebraska, illustrated those risks. The hospital was forced to shut down its computer network following a compromise, disrupting operations and delaying treatment. For smaller healthcare providers, maintaining a fully staffed security operations center or integrating multiple cybersecurity platforms can be financially and operationally difficult. Project Lifeline 250 is intended to address those limitations by bringing advanced cybersecurity capabilities to hospitals that might otherwise lack the resources to deploy them. "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." [Subscribe to the CYBR.SEC.Media newsletter](#/portal/signup/free) ## Rilian brings agentic AI to hospital cybersecurity Rilian's contribution centers on its Caspian platform, which uses agentic AI to coordinate security tools, analyze threat intelligence and automate cybersecurity workflows. The platform brings sensor telemetry, threat intelligence and detection capabilities into a unified command environment, reducing the need for analysts to move between disconnected security systems. The approach is intended to help resource-constrained organizations investigate threats more quickly and improve their ability to respond to attacks across information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT) environments. For hospitals, those environments can include conventional IT infrastructure as well as connected systems supporting medical facilities and other essential operations. Rilian says Caspian can integrate existing security technologies and intelligence feeds while automating work that would otherwise require significant manual effort. "Defenders across all industries are outnumbered, understaffed, and fighting a battle on multiple fronts that requires powerful, intelligent solutions to fight back," Schnedler said. The company has not disclosed how many hospitals will participate in the initial deployment, the duration of the pilot or the specific performance measures that will determine whether it is successful. ## The limits of AI autonomy in critical infrastructure The deployment also raises a question Schnedler addressed during his earlier CYBR.HAK.CAST appearance: How much authority should AI agents have over systems whose disruption could endanger people? As [CYBR.SEC.Media previously reported](https://www.cybrsecmedia.com/agentic-ai-is-coming-to-critical-infrastructure-security-but-autonomy-has-its-limits/), Schnedler described how specialized AI agents could gather asset information, investigate vulnerabilities and correlate threat intelligence before presenting their findings to human analysts. But he cautioned against allowing AI agents to make unrestricted operational changes. Shutting down an industrial system or other critical asset can have consequences far beyond a conventional IT outage. That distinction is especially relevant in healthcare, where automated responses must account for patient safety and continuity of care. Schnedler's background helps explain the company's focus on critical infrastructure. Before founding Rilian, he worked in public safety and security, including the New York Police Department's Lower Manhattan Security Initiative and international counterterrorism-related projects. His path into cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection was explored in an earlier [CYBR.HAK.CAST interview, ](https://www.cybrsecmedia.com/from-used-car-sales-to-counterterrorism-with-christian-schnedler/)[*From Used Car Sales to Counterterrorism with Christian Schnedler*](https://www.cybrsecmedia.com/from-used-car-sales-to-counterterrorism-with-christian-schnedler/). ## From Texas water utilities to South Carolina hospitals Project Lifeline 250 follows [Project Watershed 250](https://www.txcc.texas.gov/project-watershed-250?ref=cybrsecmedia.com), a Texas initiative focused on protecting water and wastewater systems from cyberattacks, including threats associated with foreign adversaries. Both efforts reflect a broader push to strengthen cybersecurity at essential service providers that often operate with limited technical personnel and security resources. The South Carolina program extends that model into healthcare, where disruptions can affect emergency services, medical procedures and access to treatment. The initiative also brings together federal agencies, state officials and private-sector cybersecurity companies to develop approaches that could be applied beyond the initial pilot. HHS Chief Counselor Chris Klomp described the effort as an opportunity to develop a model that rural hospitals nationwide could adopt while sharing best practices and coordinating their defenses. The program aligns with the administration's broader cybersecurity strategy, including its emphasis on artificial intelligence and critical infrastructure resilience. ## What's next for Project Lifeline 250 The immediate focus is the South Carolina pilot, which will test the application of advanced cybersecurity capabilities in rural healthcare environments. The longer-term objective is to identify technologies, operational practices and deployment models that can be expanded to other rural hospitals across the country. For Rilian, the project represents an opportunity to demonstrate how agentic AI security orchestration performs in a critical infrastructure setting where the consequences of failure extend beyond data loss and business disruption. For participating hospitals, the challenge will be translating advanced cybersecurity technology into practical protection without adding operational complexity or compromising patient care. The pilot's results will help determine whether the approach can scale to rural healthcare systems nationwide. [![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/ab/67/ab676516-71e3-473d-8f73-9e0692f5aaee/content/images/2026/10/2027-Events-Banner-60.png)](https://www.cybrsecmedia.com/conference/)