The Digital Dark Age
On an ordinary Friday, the world was thrown into chaos. A single software update from CrowdStrike, a leading cybersecurity provider, triggered a global tech outage. This incident laid bare the vulnerability of our digital infrastructure, affecting everything from banks and companies to emergency services and airlines.
Despite the widespread disruption, financial markets largely operated as normal, and many companies began restoring their systems. This event served as a stark reminder of our increasing dependence on technology and the potential consequences of its failure.
CrowdStrike’s Response
George Kurtz, CEO of CrowdStrike, was quick to address the issue. He assured the public that the problem had been identified and a fix was in place. “This is not a security incident or cyberattack,” he emphasized. “We’re deeply sorry for the impact that we’ve caused to customers, to travelers, to anyone affected by this.”
The issue was traced back to a software change in CrowdStrike’s Falcon service, which monitors machines for threats. Although the change has since been undone, clients were required to use a workaround to download the fix.
The Broad Impact
The outage had far-reaching effects. In the U.S., 911 and nonemergency call centers were disrupted. Starbucks faced issues with its app ordering and payment systems. Major banks, including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo, experienced varying degrees of impact.
Seaports from Los Angeles to Gdansk reported delays, but most resumed normal operations by Friday. Railroads and delivery services also felt the impact, with Union Pacific, BNSF, and United Parcel Service all warning of potential delays.
Travel Disruptions
By Friday evening, over 41,000 flights had been delayed and more than 4,600 canceled. At airports, travelers faced significant delays, with Spirit Airlines agents in Columbus, Ohio, resorting to handing out paper boarding passes.
Hotels also struggled, finding it difficult to bill guests or create new reservations. Alan L. Assaf, COO of Indus Hotels, noted, “On-property managers are definitely pulling their hair out.”
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, X, and SpaceX, was critical of the outage. He described it as causing a “seizure” in the auto supply chain and labeled it the “biggest IT fail ever.”
