Texas water systems become testing ground for new federal cyber defense program
The Trump administration is launching Project Watershed 250, a six-month pilot in Texas that pairs federal agencies with private cybersecurity firms to stress-test and strengthen water utilities against cyberattacks. The program aims to scale nationwide.
The Trump administration is launching a new initiative Monday to protect American water systems from cyberattacks, beginning with a six-month pilot program in Texas that pairs federal agencies with private-sector cybersecurity and artificial intelligence companies. Project Watershed 250 is designed to identify vulnerabilities in water utilities before adversaries can exploit them, with plans to scale the model across the country, according to a White House official.
National Cyber Director Sean Cairncross said the program reflects President Trump's commitment to securing critical infrastructure. «Project Watershed 250 is another example of President Trump putting American families and communities first,» Cairncross said. «President Trump has cemented America's leadership in AI security and innovation and is now bringing those exquisite tools to local communities and utilities in Texas and ultimately, across the nation.»
The program will connect Texas water utilities with U.S. cybersecurity companies to test existing defenses and strengthen vulnerable systems using private-sector tools. It will employ «red-teaming,» a practice in which security experts simulate attacks to stress-test networks, identify weaknesses hackers could exploit, and then reinforce those systems. The Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency will serve as federal partners, while Texas Cyber Command will work alongside the White House with local governments and companies including Microsoft, Reflection AI, Palo Alto Networks, and Dragos Inc.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott welcomed the initiative, emphasizing the importance of reliable drinking water for the state. «There is nothing more important to Texans than clean, reliable drinking water. Project Watershed 250 puts federal, state, and private-sector cyber defenses behind our utilities at no cost,» Abbott said. «The White House, the Texas Cyber Command, and industry now work from the same playbook.»
Dragos CEO Robert Lee said U.S. water infrastructure faces active, documented threats, particularly at small utilities that often lack strong cybersecurity defenses. He said the program will help deliver technology, training, and support to those vulnerable systems before an attack occurs. The launch follows recent cyberattacks that targeted more than 30 Minnesota water systems, though a White House official said the program is not a direct response to those incidents. «However, these recent attacks have reiterated the need for this modernization and focus on water systems,» the official said, noting the effort has been in the works since last year.
Becky Sosnov, head of corporate affairs at Reflection AI, said the program demonstrates how American-built open-weight AI models running on a utility's own systems can help keep communities safe. Microsoft US Public Sector president Chris Barry said the company is proud to support the effort, bringing cybersecurity expertise, threat intelligence, and AI-powered security capabilities to help water utilities strengthen resilience against evolving threats.
The pilot builds on Trump's June executive order on Promoting Advanced Artificial Intelligence Innovation and Security and his Cyber Strategy for America released in March. The push comes as the administration races to build out U.S. data centers to fuel the AI boom, putting more attention on the water and power needed to keep them running.
