A faulty content update caused a system crash for Windows hosts on the CrowdStrike cybersecurity company’s CrowdStrike Falcon® platform. This event affected critical infrastructure worldwide, including airlines, banks, and hospitals. According to CrowdStrike’s blog, the “sensor configuration update that caused the system crash was remediated” within an hour and a half; however, implementing the fix has been a bit more complicated and time-consuming. CrowdStrike created a Remediation and Guidance Hub to guide and inform customers. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has released an ongoing alert updating the public on this event and its potential opening for phishing attempts and other malicious activity from cyber threat actors.
Date of event: July 19, 2024
Impact:
- Outage affected about 8.5 million Windows devices (Microsoft)
- Thousands of flights canceled worldwide (The Independent)
- At least 12 major American health facilities affected by outage (ABC News)
- At least 8 major banks were affected by outage (Austin American-Statesman)
Related Resources:
- Securing the Software Supply Chain: Recommended Practices for Software Bill of Materials Consumption
- Safeguarding the Federal Software Supply Chain, Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation of the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, House of Representatives, One Hundred Eighteenth Congress, First Session, November 29, 2023
- Strategies for the Integration of Software Supply Chain Security in DevSecOps CI/CD Pipelines
- Secure Cloud Business Applications: Hybrid Identity Solutions Guidance
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