Despite advancements in cybersecurity solutions, the frequency and severity of cyber incidents continue to rise. In 2024, the average cost of a data breach climbed to $4.88 million, and the number of confirmed breaches hit a new peak. The July 2024 CrowdStrike incident underscored the importance of assessing the broader business impact of cyber events, setting resilient cyber objectives, and improving communication for better risk management decisions.
On July 19th, 2024, a single update from CrowdStrike caused widespread disruptions, affecting over 8.5 million systems and impacting operations of numerous organizations globally, including major Fortune 1000 companies. This “glitch” led to estimated losses surpassing $5 billion, with insurers facing payouts of around $1.5 billion due to business interruption, cyber, and system failure claims. The incident highlighted the significant repercussions of aggregated cyber risks. In response, Delta, a major affected entity, initiated legal action against CrowdStrike in October 2024, attributing the disruption of thousands of flights and millions of customers to the company’s untested updates, resulting in over $500 million in losses.
