Microsoft Rips Into Delta Airlines For Sluggish Recovery After Global CrowdStrike Outage

So, let’s dive into the drama: Microsoft is laying the blame squarely on Delta for its epic struggle to bounce back from that global cyber outage that had the airline canceling over 6,000 flights. Yep, you read that right—6,000!

The conflicting accounts from Delta Air Lines, cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, and Microsoft have erupted into a blame game filled with legal threats. This situation highlights one of the consequences of a world increasingly reliant on a few key technology providers.

Here’s the lowdown: Last month, CrowdStrike, a global cybersecurity firm, rolled out a software update that caused some serious chaos for Microsoft’s clientele, including a bunch of airlines. While other major US carriers managed to get their act together the next day, Delta was still floundering.

Microsoft’s initial findings suggest that Delta, unlike its peers, hadn’t exactly kept up with the times regarding IT infrastructure. In other words, their tech setup might be a bit of a dinosaur compared to others.

Delta, not taking this lying down, has roped in the big guns—David Boies of Boies Schiller Flexner—to seek damages from both CrowdStrike and Microsoft. They’re not just asking for a little something; they’re gunning for serious compensation.

Delta’s CEO, Ed Bastian, took to CNBC last week to air some grievances, saying that both Microsoft and CrowdStrike had dropped the ball on providing “exceptional service.” He even went as far as to label Microsoft’s platform as the “most fragile.”

Bastian declared that the airline, which leads the U.S. in revenue, has “no choice” but to take legal action against the two tech firms. With an estimated $500 million in damages from lost revenue and refunds due to flight delays and cancellations, Bastian emphasized that pursuing legal recourse is the only viable option.

Microsoft’s lawyer has accused Delta of presenting a “false picture” of its actions following the July CrowdStrike outage.

Mark Cheffo, a Microsoft lawyer, wasn’t having any of it. He fired back, calling Delta’s accusations “incomplete, false, misleading, and damaging to Microsoft and its reputation.”

According to Cheffo, Microsoft’s software wasn’t the culprit behind the CrowdStrike mess, but they did offer help—free of charge!—which Delta apparently ignored. Cheffo also claimed Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, reached out to Bastian directly via email and got nothing but crickets in return.

• CrowdStrike, which was responsible for initiating the outage on Microsoft Windows systems with a problematic update, pushed back on Sunday. In a letter reviewed by Axios, the company “strongly rejects” any claims of gross negligence or willful misconduct related to the outage.

  
  

• The letter also warns that if Delta proceeds with its “public threat of litigation,” the airline will need to justify to the public, its shareholders, and possibly a jury why CrowdStrike accepted responsibility for its actions while Delta did not.

  
  

• Meanwhile, CrowdStrike is already contending with a proposed class action lawsuit from affected air travelers.

Microsoft says it repeatedly tried to lend a hand after the outage, but Delta turned them down. Apparently, Delta was using other tech providers for crew-tracking and scheduling, which Microsoft thinks might be why Delta refused their help.

Cheffo made it clear that if Delta decides to sue, Microsoft will be ready to “vigorously” defend itself. And CrowdStrike is also pushing back, stating that their CEO personally offered on-site assistance to Delta’s CEO, which, you guessed it, went unanswered.

Here's the latest: On Tuesday, Microsoft sent a letter to Delta outlining what it claims are communications demonstrating Delta's refusal of Microsoft's assistance. According to Microsoft, this refusal was likely due to Delta relying on IBM or other tech companies for support with its downed crew-tracking and scheduling systems.