CrowdStrike CEO Apologizes for Casual Response to Massive IT Outage

Under fire for casual response to global Windows outage, CrowdStrike CEO apologises, says it will take time to fix

On Friday, initially, CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz said that the global IT outage was caused by a single faulty content update. "This is not a security incident or cyberattack. The issue has been identified, isolated, and a fix has been deployed," he said in a post on X... Read More The worldwide Microsoft Windows outage that crippled flight operations, hospitals, banks, businesses, and more since Friday is yet to be resolved. CrowdStrike, the cybersecurity company whose update caused the disruptions, said it will take some time to fix. REUTERS On Friday, initially, CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz said that the global IT outage was caused by a single faulty content update. "This is not a security incident or cyberattack. The issue has been identified, isolated, and a fix has been deployed," he said in a post on X. Also read: How CrowdStrike is triggering the infamous Windows' 'Blue Screen Of Death' However, many in the tech business sectors called out Kurtz's response for being too casual and pointed out that he did not even issue an apology for causing millions, if not billions, of losses to businesses around the world due to the outage. CrowdStrike Later in the day, as CrowdStrike continued to work on the fix, and a large section of Windows systems were still experiencing the Blue Screen of Death, Kurtz put out another post on X, addressing the situation and also stating that he was "deeply sorry for the inconvenience and disruption." "We understand the gravity of the situation and are deeply sorry for the inconvenience and disruption. We are working with all impacted customers to ensure that systems are back up and they can deliver the services their customers are counting on," Kurtz said. Later, Kurtz also posted a letter he wrote to CrowdStrike customers, apologizing for the outage and promising to fix it at the earliest. AP This apology, too, many felt did not meet the extent of the damage caused globally due to the outage. Many on X said that his words fell short of what was expected of him during such an unprecedented crisis. "Sorry, your corporate wording does not match the magnitude of failure here. If up until now you don't know the root cause, this means you're busy with identifying either the best cover-up or excuse," Michael Kromer, CEO of German IT company NETitwork, said. On Saturday morning, Kurtz issued another update on the evolving situation and said that CrowdStrike is continuing to work with customers and partners to resolve the issue. Also read: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Aims To Reignite 'Windows vs. Mac' Battle In AI REUTERS Earlier, on Friday, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella acknowledged the outage and said, "they are working closely with CrowdStrike and across the industry to provide customers with technical guidance and support to safely bring their systems back online."

CEO at cybersecurity firm that caused a global outage forgot to apologize

CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. Chief Executive Officer George Kurtz co-wrote a book that's commonly referred to as the bible of computer security. When it comes to crisis management, though, he's on shakier ground. In a post on social media platform X early Friday morning about a botched software update that crashed countless computer systems globally, Kurtz made clear the incident was not a cyberattack, his firm had identified the problem, and deployed a "fix." What he didn't say -- at least at first -- was the magic phrase that public-relations experts advise all businesses to shout from the rooftops at times like this: "I'm sorry." Kurtz's PR blunder, which he subsequently rectified in a television appearance and follow-up statements later that morning, could be the result of several things, crisis communications experts said. One possible reason is a rush to pack a lot of details about the company's response into the initial missive. A potential desire to avoid legal liability also could have been a factor. Most likely, though, the lack of contrition stems from the IT sector's longstanding struggle to relate in a more personalized and less robotic way with the general public. "A CEO needs a nuanced and emotionally truthful response," said Davia Temin, founder and CEO of crisis-communications firm Temin & Co. "This is a response scrubbed by a legal team with lawsuits in mind. It holds little to no accountability, which is what makes apologies so powerful. And it positions Kurtz almost as an AI voice -- automated, soulless. In fact, ChatGPT does a better job of appearing to care than he does." CrowdStrike didn't immediately reply to a request for comment on its CEO's initial statement. Other public-relations advisers were more generous in their assessment of Kurtz's handling of the situation, but all agreed that the lack of an apology at the start wasn't wise. CrowdStrike's shares fell more than 11% -- their biggest drop since November 2022. "The formula is always the same, no matter what -- you start by saying there was a mistake, and apologize for it," said Paul Argenti, professor of corporate communications at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. "That statement he came out with is the kind of statement you get from IT people all the time. They're not thinking about the human side, they just want to get a job done." The early-morning post "appears to be written to IT departments," said Ron Culp, a former corporate public relations executive who now advises at DePaul University's College of Communication. "It is essential to allay fears, start fixing the problem and apologize. All three should be done in the same communication." The snafu put a spotlight on the tech sector's challenges in forging human connections, but it's nothing new. Sitcoms like Silicon Valley and Britain's The IT Crowd have mocked technology workers as arrogant and out of touch. Industry leaders who could communicate well with the general public, like Apple's Steve Jobs, honed those skills despite -- or perhaps because of -- a dearth of tech chops. When a crisis hits, those failings are magnified, experts said. But they're not fatal. Most public-relations experts gave Kurtz a grade of "B" for his overall response so far, noting his later statements were much improved. And he might not be done saying he's sorry for a while. "While I respect George's instinct to come clean and apologize," said Malik Khan, an analyst at Morningstar, "the real apology will likely occur when customers come calling."