'False, misleading and damaging': Microsoft slams Delta for CrowdStrike outage blame

A computing giant and an airline are fighting.
 By 
Alex Perry
 on 
Flight delays on a Delta flight chart due to Crowdstrike outage
Microsoft and Delta aren't happy with each other. Credit: Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images

Microsoft and Delta aren't happy with each other in the aftermath of July's massive CrowdStrike outage.

Legal representation for Microsoft sent a letter to Delta's lawyers pushing some of the blame for Delta's flight issues that weekend onto Delta itself, per The Verge. The letter, which was sent in response to comments by Delta CEO Ed Bastian that questioned Microsoft's competence, called Bastian's remarks "incomplete, false, misleading, and damaging to Microsoft and its reputation."

Microsoft refuses to take blame for Delta's outage issues

According to Microsoft, it offered to help Delta solve the CrowdStrike problem in the immediate aftermath of the outage at no charge, but it got turned down. Furthermore, Microsoft alleged that Delta rejected the help because the IT infrastructure that needed servicing actually belonged to another company, like IBM, not Windows.


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It's not really possible for us to determine who is right and wrong here, but it's clear that Microsoft and Delta fundamentally disagree on what ultimately caused Delta to suffer so many flight delays and cancellations that fateful weekend.

The outage was the result of a faulty update to the CrowdStrike security software, which is not owned nor created by Microsoft. However, the update went out to millions of Windows computers around the world, resulting in widespread blue screens of death on a massive scale.

Topics Microsoft

journalist alex perry looking at a smartphone
Alex Perry
Tech Reporter

Alex Perry is a tech reporter at Mashable who primarily covers video games and consumer tech. Alex has spent most of the last decade reviewing games, smartphones, headphones, and laptops, and he doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. He is also a Pisces, a cat lover, and a Kansas City sports fan. Alex can be found on Bluesky at yelix.bsky.social.

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