SAN FRANCISCO, October 18, 2026 — Anthropic has launched a long-term initiative to help secure critical infrastructure and open-source software by providing defenders with AI tools, research and technical resources.
The effort, known as the Anthropic Cyber Mission, includes the Critical Infrastructure Defense Program (CIDP), which combines Anthropic’s frontier Claude models, on-site engineers and threat research to help protect operational technology supporting power grids, water systems, factories and transportation networks. Founding partners include Accenture, Booz Allen, CrowdStrike, Deloitte, Dragos, Hitachi, Insane Cyber, Nozomi Networks, Palo Alto Networks, PwC and Rockwell Automation. Anthropic said several partners are already working with Claude to address vulnerabilities and help customers fix them, beginning with a small group of providers to assess which approaches are most effective and practical.
New Defense Initiative Launched Against Industrial Threats
Anthropic launched the Anthropic Cyber Mission, a long-term initiative to help secure critical infrastructure and open-source software by providing defenders with AI (artificial intelligence) tools, research and technical resources. The effort includes the Critical Infrastructure Defense Program (CIDP), which combines Anthropic’s frontier Claude models, on-site engineers and threat research to help protect OT (operational technology) supporting power grids, water systems, factories and transportation networks. The program’s founding partners include Accenture, Booz Allen, CrowdStrike, Deloitte, Dragos, Hitachi, Insane Cyber, Nozomi Networks, Palo Alto Networks, PwC and Rockwell Automation. Anthropic said several partners are already working with Claude to address vulnerabilities and help customers fix them, beginning with a small group of providers to assess which approaches are most effective and practical.
The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Safeguarding Legacy Systems
Anthropic said critical infrastructure is hard to defend in many ways that AI cannot fix, but we believe that frontier models can help find and repair weaknesses before those weaknesses are used to cut off power or make water unsafe. Our first step is to work with a small cohort of providers to learn which strategies are most effective and practical. The initiative addresses the security challenges posed by legacy OT systems, which often cannot be taken offline for patching and may retain known vulnerabilities for years because of operational constraints, proprietary equipment and safety risks. Anthropic said state-sponsored adversaries have spent years gaining footholds in critical systems, while the increasing availability of highly capable AI models has reduced the cost of exploiting vulnerabilities. The San Francisco, California-based company also highlighted difficulty of verifying, prioritizing and fixing security findings, noting that vulnerabilities identified during Project Glasswing sometimes remained unresolved for months, while fixes to OT systems can, in rare cases, take decades to implement safely. Anthropic said the Cyber Mission will expand to more partners and sectors, to reduce exploitable entry points and enable faster recovery from attacks on essential services.
Founding Partners and Industry Collaboration
These organizations represent the providers that operators rely on to secure these systems: the consulting and advanced technology companies that run security programs, the security companies that guard the business and industrial networks, and the manufacturers that build and patch the equipment itself, according to an Anthropic announcement last week. This work is underway. Several partners are currently working with Claude to fix vulnerabilities and help customers do the same. Anthropic said the Cyber Mission will expand to more partners and sectors, to reduce exploitable entry points and enable faster recovery from attacks on essential services.
Ongoing Challenges in Patching Operational Technology
The initiative addresses the security challenges posed by legacy OT systems, which often cannot be taken offline for patching and may retain known vulnerabilities for years because of operational constraints, proprietary equipment and safety risks. Anthropic said state-sponsored adversaries have spent years gaining footholds in critical systems, while the increasing availability of highly capable AI models has reduced the cost of exploiting vulnerabilities. The San Francisco, California-based company also highlighted difficulty of verifying, prioritizing and fixing security findings, noting that vulnerabilities identified during Project Glasswing sometimes remained unresolved for months, while fixes to OT systems can, in rare cases, take decades to implement safely.
Future Expansion of the Cyber Mission Program
Anthropic said the Cyber Mission will expand to more partners and sectors, to reduce exploitable entry points and enable faster recovery from attacks on essential services. As part of Project Glasswing, partners uncovered many vulnerabilities, but we haven’t yet achieved a sufficient reduction in cyber risk. It’s easier than ever to find vu. The Kremlin hopes intensified sabotage and provocations in Western countries will disrupt aid to Kyiv as Russia targets Ukraine’s civilian and critical infrastructure in winter 2026-27, the Institute for the Study of War said on Oct. 17. Polish authorities have warned that Russia could intensify provocations targeting Poland’s logistics infrastructure, potentially seeking to disrupt the delivery of Western aid to Ukraine during the winter, analysts said. Former Polish National Security Bureau chief Jacek Siewiera said on Oct. 16 that there could be a “significant increase in hybrid operations” against European countries this winter, including drone attacks on administrative and civilian facilities. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk responded to Siewiera’s comments, citing intelligence from Polish, Ukrainian and allied agencies that suggested Russia could escalate its activities before Christmas, including an increase in sabotage and provocations on Polish territory. According to Tusk, the coming months could prove decisive for the future of Ukraine and Europe. He added that Russia would intensify attempts to sabotage shipments of gas, oil and food to Ukraine, as well as logistics and railway infrastructure along the Polish-Ukrainian border, testing Poland’s response. On Nov. 15, 2025, individuals linked to Russia carried out acts of sabotage targeting railway tracks in Poland near the Dorohusk border crossing with Ukraine. In September 2026, Russia increasingly targeted Ukrainian border crossings and facilities along the Polish-Ukrainian border with drones. Russia has also stepped up arson attacks and sabotage against European defense industry facilities since at least 2024, including recent attacks on sites in Estonia and Germany. Experts say such operations allow the Kremlin to disrupt Western aid shipments to Ukraine at relatively low cost. On Oct. 16, Russian forces launched a drone strike on a customs terminal in Kovel, Volyn Oblast. The attack set approximately 10 trucks with semitrailers on fire and injured at least one person. In September, Tusk said Poland would change traffic arrangements at its border with Ukraine to prevent large concentrations of vehicles that could become targets for Russian attacks. Particular attention was to be given to fuel trucks. Russia repeatedly attacked the Yahodyn area near the Polish border in September. One drone struck a gas station about a kilometer from the border crossing, while another attack damaged the locomotive of a Kyiv-Warsaw train at Yahodyn station. During other attacks, jet-powered drones exploded near the Polish border, prompting Poland to scramble military aircraft several times. The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues. Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them. For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has b
Sources
- Anthropic launches Critical Infrastructure Defense Program with security firms to protect industrial OT environments – Industrial Cyber
- Kremlin plans to intensify sabotage in Europe amid winter strikes on Ukraine – ISW
- Kremlin plans to intensify sabotage in Europe amid winter strikes on Ukraine – ISW
Photo: DHSgov (Public domain)
