CrowdStrike is responding to Delta Air Lines' accusations that the cybersecurity firm failed to provide adequate support during a recent global IT outage.
The outcome of Delta's lawsuit against CrowdStrike could influence future legal actions related to IT outages. Delta CEO Ed Bastian reported to CNBC that the outage cost the airline $500 million and led to the cancellation of over 5,000 flights.
CrowdStrike attributes the July 19 outage to faulty content data in a configuration update, which resulted in the "Blue Screen of Death" on millions of Windows computers. Delta's lawsuit, filed last week, accuses CrowdStrike of not offering financial assistance for the incident.
On Sunday, CrowdStrike's legal counsel sent a letter to Delta, firmly denying any allegations of gross negligence or willful misconduct. The letter states that CrowdStrike contacted Delta within hours of the incident, offering assistance and informing Delta of available remediation options. It also mentions that CrowdStrike's CEO contacted Delta's CEO, offering onsite help, but received no response.
This dispute has sparked broader discussions about network resilience and companies' responsibilities to protect against such outages. Delta argues that CrowdStrike should have ensured robust internal processes to prevent the blackout. At the same time, CrowdStrike contends that Delta should have had adequate backup plans in place.