CrowdStrike: All Systems Down | Guarding the Cloud
1/28/202637 min
In 2011, CrowdStrike launched with an innovative vision: using cloud-based software to provide cybersecurity. They attracted big clients, including Fortune 500 companies and critical government agencies. And along the way, they investigated notorious hacks, like the North Korean breach of Sony Pictures, and the 2016 hack of the Democratic National Committee.
But in 2024, they faced their biggest test of all, when a bug in their own software created the largest I.T outage in world history.
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsDavid Brown· Host0:00
[upbeat music] It's three AM on July nineteenth, twenty twenty-four. George Kurtz, the co-founder and CEO of the cybersecurity company CrowdStrike, is asleep when his phone begins ringing on his nightstand. Kurtz awakens, disoriented. He squints at the screen. It's a call from Michael Sentonas, CrowdStrike's president. That's all Kurtz needs to see. He answers the call immediately. "Michael?"
Speaker 10:32
"Sorry to wake you, but we've got a problem."
David Brown· Host0:35
Kurtz sits up in bed. "How bad is it?"
Speaker 10:37
"Devices are crashing all over the world. Many of them are unable to restart and come back online."
David Brown· Host0:43
"Is this a Microsoft outage or something?"
Speaker 10:45
"Yeah, we thought that, too, but it's not Microsoft's Azure platform or Windows."
David Brown· Host0:51
There's a pause on the line before Sentonas continues.
Speaker 10:54
"You know, we recently pushed out a routine Falcon update, and right after that, systems started failing."
David Brown· Host0:59
Kurtz closes his eyes. "Oh, my God! So could this be on us?"
Speaker 11:05
"Uh, well, it's, uh, it's looking that way. And George, look, if anyone's running our software rebooted after the update, they're down: airlines, hospitals, banks. If we don't find a fix soon, this is only gonna get worse."
David Brown· Host1:19
Kurtz's heart skips a beat. This is his worst nightmare. Guaranteeing the digital security of major corporations, government services, and critical infrastructure