A spokesperson for the European Commission has responded to accusations from technology giant Microsoft, saying the EU executive was to blame for a massive IT outage, according to Yahoo News.
The outage, which affected 8.5 million computers running Windows and CrowdStrike’s Falcon cybersecurity software, resulted in flights being suspended, businesses unable to process card payments, and hospitals and clinics cancelling operations.
A Microsoft spokesman yesterday suggested to US media that a 2009 agreement with the European Commission was the cause of last Friday’s widespread IT failure. He said the 2009 agreement “gives makers of security software the same level of access to Windows that Microsoft gets.” The deal was designed to counter Microsoft’s monopoly position, especially in the area of web browsers.
In contrast, Apple, which was not included in the deal, operates in a closed ecosystem and is therefore not affected by the failure of this update. A spokesperson for the European Commission today responded to the accusations, stating that “Microsoft is free to decide on its business model.
It is for Microsoft to adapt its security infrastructure to respond to threats in line with EU competition law. Additionally, consumers are free to benefit from competition and choose between different cybersecurity providers.”
The spokesperson also stated that “the incident was not limited to the European Union and that Microsoft has never raised any concerns about security with the Commission either before or after the incident.”
