Last week, a significant software glitch at CrowdStrike (Nasdaq: CRWD), a major cybersecurity company, caused widespread disruption across the tech industry. The bug’s impact was so severe that some companies, including Delta Air Lines, are still grappling with its aftermath.
Third-party vendors responsible for selling and supporting CrowdStrike’s products have been working tirelessly to assist affected customers.
Related: CrowdStrike CEO “Deeply Sorry” After IT Update Causes Major Global Microsoft Outage
Apparently feeling bad about the trouble they’ve caused, CrowdStrike offered overworked partners a $10 Uber Eats voucher (£7.75 in the UK) as a token of appreciation. One could compare it to the office pizza party, but $10, sadly, isn’t even enough to buy you pizza on Uber Eats.
If you think that’s sad, it gets sadder. People initially thought CrowdStrike was giving out the vouchers to customers, and the company had to clarify it was only giving it out to partners. But people were sharing the email with a copy of the QR code of the voucher on it. Naturally, some of those who saw it also tried to cash in.
Now it gets worse still as recipients (or friends of recipients) began reporting on Wednesday that their vouchers were being revoked. Some of those who tried to redeem it got an error message that said the voucher had been “canceled by the issuing party and is no longer valid.’
CrowdStrike later explained that “Uber flagged it as fraud because of high usage rates,” likely due to those who tried to freeload off the QR codes that were shared by those who received them.
They didn’t clarify if they would try to compensate the too-little-too-late effort for those who weren’t able to redeem. It’s also not clear how many of these vouchers were distributed. What’s clear though is that the financial impact of Friday’s outage has been substantial.
According to an analysis by Parametrix, a cloud monitoring and insurance firm, Fortune 500 companies may have lost up to $5.4 billion in revenues and gross profit.
As of now, CrowdStrike has not commented on any plans for financial compensation to affected customers, though experts anticipate demands for remuneration and possible legal action.
Information for this story was found via the sources and companies mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to the organizations discussed. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
