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On July 19, 2024, in Ankara, Turkey, computer screens displayed a blue screen error due to a global communications outage caused by CrowdStrike, a company that provides cybersecurity services to the US technology company Microsoft.
Harun Ozalp | Anadolu | Getty Images
Crowdstrike CEO George Kurtz said more than 97% of Windows sensors were back online after an update by the cybersecurity firm caused one of the world’s largest IT outages.
“To our customers who are still impacted, please know that we will not rest until a full recovery is achieved,” Kurtz said in a LinkedIn post on Thursday.
Last week, CrowdStrike released a routine update to users around the world, mostly large enterprises, that contained a bug that caused Microsoft’s Windows operating systems to crash.
Many users woke up to a Windows blue screen error on Friday, as the IT outage caused chaos around the world, with flights cancelled, businesses closing early and medical staff scrambling to keep things running.
CrowdStrike has rolled back the update to fix the issue.
The company’s shares have plummeted since the incident, and CEO Kurtz is trying to stem the damage to its reputation.
“I deeply apologize for the disruption this outage has caused and I personally apologize to everyone affected. While I can’t promise perfection, I can promise you that our response will be focused, effective and acted with urgency,” he wrote on LinkedIn.
CrowdStrike sent Uber Eats gift cards to “teammates and partners who have been helping customers through this situation,” a company spokesperson told CNBC.
TechCrunch The company had previously reported the news, adding that some people were having problems using their gift cards.
“Uber warned us that it was a scam due to the high usage rate,” a Crowdstrike spokesperson said.