CrowdStrike accuses competitors of profiting from global IT outage
CrowdStrike's President, Michael Sentonas, has criticized the company's competitors for their attempts to capitalize on a recent global IT outage. The disruption was caused by a flawed software update from CrowdStrike on July 19. Sentonas expressed his disappointment with rivals like SentinelOne and Trellix, who allegedly used this incident as an opportunity to promote their own products and gain market share.
Sentonas defends company's reliability amid criticism
Sentonas defended CrowdStrike by stating that no vendor could "technically" guarantee their software would never cause a similar incident. He emphasized the importance of trust in their industry and criticized competitors for exploiting the situation to push their products. The president described these tactics as "misguided" and potentially damaging to their own reputations due to spreading what he termed as "shady commentary."
IT outage's impact and CrowdStrike's liability
The IT disruption caused by CrowdStrike's botched update had far-reaching effects, shutting down 8.5 million Windows devices worldwide. The fallout was particularly severe due to the high-profile nature of CrowdStrike's clients. Insurers estimate that losses from the IT disruption could run into billions of dollars. Delta Air Lines alone has estimated its losses at $500 million due to more than 6,000 canceled flights and is considering legal action against CrowdStrike.
CrowdStrike's market position challenged post-outage
The IT outage has led to increased scrutiny of CrowdStrike. SentinelOne's CEO, Tomer Weingarten, attributed the global shutdown to "bad design decisions" and "risky architecture" at CrowdStrike. Meanwhile, Trellix assured its clients they need not fear a similar event due to their conservative approach. This incident has sparked a shift in the endpoint security market with investors betting on publicly listed rivals like SentinelOne and Palo Alto Networks gaining an edge over CrowdStrike.
CrowdStrike plans to implement new checks to avoid such disruptions
In response to the incident, CrowdStrike plans to implement new checks and staggered updates to prevent a repeat of such mass disruption. Sentonas emphasized that their continued presence inside an operating system's core is crucial for maximum protection against cyber threats. Despite the recent challenges, he remains confident about CrowdStrike's market position and resilience in the face of adversity.
