At ReSource Pro, we’re deeply committed to cybersecurity and business continuity. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at how our team responded to the recent global CrowdStrike outage.
Affecting nearly three-quarters of all Windows operating systems, the outage tested our disaster recovery and business continuity plans. Thanks to our geo-diverse infrastructure, proactive approach to crisis management, and the hard work of our global teams, the incident resulted in minimal impact to our clients.
What was the Crowdstrike outage?
On Friday, July 19th, a faulty update from CrowdStrike Falcon sensor, a widely-used Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) software, began causing Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) errors and repeated reboots on Microsoft Windows systems. The impact was global, affecting businesses and organizations around the world, including ReSource Pro.
Recovery from the Crowdstrike outage
Our ability to recover quickly from this incident was largely because of our geo-diverse operations. Our teams in China were among the first to experience the outage, giving them a head start in troubleshooting and implementing remediation measures.
By the time our teams in the U.S. woke up, much of the groundwork had already been laid, accelerating our overall recovery.
By 05:00 AM on Saturday July 20th, we had achieved 87% recovery across all affected systems. This was largely due to the work of our China and India teams, who had been addressing the issue throughout their workday.
The team fully restored critical client services by Monday morning in both China and India. Although the outage happened during the last hours of their workweek, our teams worked hard to ensure that client operations were not only restored but also caught up on any delayed work. This resulted in minimal losses and negligible impact to our clients’ operations.
This 24/7 global coverage helped us stay ahead of the problem, ensuring that our clients experienced minimal disruption.
Keeping clients informed
From the onset, communicating with our clients was a main priority. We provided clear, timely updates to all affected clients, keeping them informed about the situation and our recovery efforts. Transparency is always key in maintaining trust, and it’s especially important during cybersecurity incidents like this.
“Very impressed with how ReSource Pro managed this global outage. The communications were thorough, and your company resolved the issue timely, etc. So impressed and I’ll write a formal follow-up but wanted to send my kudos in this text.”
ReSource Pro Client
Key factors in our incident response
While we are proud of our team and our management of this incident, we’re also committed to continuous improvement. Events like this underscore the importance of maintaining a resilient infrastructure and a well-prepared global team. Here are a few key takeaways from this experience:
- Geo-diversity matters: Our global presence allowed us to manage the recovery process around the clock. No matter the time zone, our teams were constantly working toward a resolution.
- Proactive communication is crucial: We kept our clients informed at every stage with timely and relevant updates. When organizations are at their most vulnerable, transparency helps to maintain relationships.
- Testing and preparation pay off: Our pre-existing disaster recovery and business continuity plans were essential. They guided our efforts, ensuring a quick response to the issue. Regular testing of these plans ensures we’re ready for future incidents.
Looking ahead: Our commitment to cybersecurity
October is Cyber Security Awareness Month – a helpful reminder of the critical importance of cybersecurity and business continuity planning. At ReSource Pro, we’re constantly working to ensure that we are prepared to handle any potential disruptions.
No organization can completely eliminate the risk of outages. However, a robust response plan can mean the difference between disaster and temporary inconvenience. Our global reach, quick response, and strong communication helped us mitigate the impact and ensure that our clients’ operations were protected.
We are proud of our team’s hard work and dedication in managing this global outage, and we remain committed to safeguarding our clients’ operations through resilient technology and proactive planning. We’re ready to help your team navigate software issues like the Crowdstrike outage, cyberattacks, and other unforeseen challenges.
We’ll be ready for whatever challenges may come next – so that our clients can continue focusing on what matters. Learn more about our commitment to security excellence.
