Groundbreaking claims expected after Crowdstrike IT breakdown

The Global IT outage on July 19, 2024 caused disruptions at airports all around the world. EPA/RAJAT GUPTA

The claims for damages following the recent global IT breakdown of Crowdstrike are expected to be groundbreaking, according to Matthias Stürmer, a professor of digitalisation at Bern University of Applied Sciences. However, Stürmer is not optimistic about the Swiss air navigation service provider, Skyguide, pursuing legal action.

In an interview with Swiss newspaper, SonntagsZeitung, Stürmer expressed surprise that there were no major disruptions on July 19, noting that the time difference had mitigated the impact in Europe, as many people had not yet started work early in the morning.

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Explaining the cause of the breakdown, Stürmer clarified that it was not a typical software update but rather a faulty update of the detection patterns for cyber-attacks. He suggested that Crowdstrike may not have tested the update thoroughly, otherwise, the error would have been detected. Stürmer described this as a rookie mistake that could be attributed to economic interests, as companies often prioritise cost-effective and efficient operations.

+Global IT outage causes disruption at Swiss airports

Skyguide, which was significantly affected by the IT breakdown, was criticised by Stürmer for lacking a contingency plan. The breakdown led to delays and flight cancellations at Zurich Airport on the previous Friday. Stürmer believes Crowdstrike should expect claims for damages, but he questions the viability of these claims. Crowdstrike’s general terms and conditions specify that their cybersecurity software should not be used for critical applications, explicitly including air traffic control.

+Explainer: how vulnerable is Switzerland to cyber-attacks?

This situation puts Skyguide in a difficult position, as they had to agree to these terms to use the software. Legally, the global crash presents a groundbreaking case, as there has never been a failure of this scale before, and the damage could amount to billions of francs. Zurich Airport has already announced plans to take legal action. Matthias Stürmer is a professor at Bern University of Applied Sciences and heads the Institute for Transformation in the Public Sector, where he focuses on digitalisation, public procurement, sustainability, and open source.

Adapted from German by DeepL/amva

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