CrowdStrike to Answer for Global IT Outage Impacting Healthcare and Travel

CrowdStrike, the US cybersecurity company, is set to face questions in the US Congress over a global IT outage on 19 July that left millions of systems using Microsoft software crippled. The incident, triggered by a rogue software update, affected up to 8.5 million computers worldwide, disrupting key services, including healthcare and transportation.

Among those hit were General Practitioners (GPs) in the UK, who struggled to access patient records and manage appointments. Dr. David Wrigley, a GP of 22 years, expressed concerns that the outage might have caused delays in critical treatments, including for cancer patients. GPs using the EMIS system, a vital tool for managing appointments and prescriptions, were unable to provide care during the disruption.

The outage also affected air travel, stranding passengers as planes were unable to depart, and small businesses lost substantial revenue due to system failures. Adam Meyers, a senior executive at CrowdStrike, will testify before Congress on Tuesday to explain the cause of the outage and outline steps the company will take to prevent similar incidents in the future.