The U.S. House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee has sent a letter to CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz, requesting him to testify about last week's global technology outage.
A malfunction in CrowdStrike's security software update caused computers running Microsoft's Windows operating system to crash on Friday, leading to global internet service disruptions. These disruptions affected a wide range of industries including airlines, banks, and healthcare. Microsoft stated on Saturday that approximately 8.5 million Windows devices were affected.
Services across industries gradually resumed later on Friday, but companies are still dealing with backlogs, delays, and flight cancellations, sparking discussions on how to prevent such incidents and whether such critical software should be managed by a few companies.
"While we appreciate CrowdStrike's response and coordination with stakeholders, we cannot overlook the seriousness of this incident, which some have called the largest information technology disruption in history," the committee stated in its letter to Kurtz on Monday. The letter was first reported by The Washington Post.
A spokesperson for CrowdStrike said, "CrowdStrike is actively engaging with the relevant congressional committees. The schedule for briefings and other engagements may be disclosed at the discretion of the members."
