Delta Air Lines Inc. filed a lawsuit against the cybersecurity company CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. Amid the turmoil this summer from a “catastrophic” software update that disabled millions of computers globally and grounded a significant portion of the airline’s passenger fleet, Delta’s operations were severely disrupted for several days. This led to thousands of flight cancellations and delays, impacting over a million customers, according to the airline’s lawsuit. CrowdStrike issued a public apology after the July 19 incident caused disruptions to computers operating on Microsoft Windows. The disruption incapacitated airports, banks, stock exchanges, and companies globally, creating significant difficulties for Delta, which faced a prolonged struggle to restore its flight schedule to normal. CrowdStrike has announced significant changes to its process for testing and releasing content updates. Delta reported that the problematic update resulted in at least $500 million in direct losses, along with “serious damage to its reputation and goodwill,” as stated in a complaint filed in state court in Georgia. In a statement, CrowdStrike responded that Delta’s claims are rooted in misinformation that shows a misunderstanding of modern cybersecurity and represent a desperate effort to deflect blame for its sluggish recovery from its outdated IT infrastructure. The cybersecurity company stated that it attempted to settle the matter outside of court regarding the update, but “Delta has opted for a different course of action.” Delta asserts that the software update was “imposed” on the company rather than being installed by its IT team. The complaint states, “These updates were automatically applied to customers and their systems even if they had not activated automatic update settings.” Delta’s allegations against CrowdStrike involve fraud, breach of contract, deceptive business practices, and computer trespass. Additionally, CrowdStrike is facing lawsuits from investors regarding the outage.
