Lessons from the Cloudflare outage and protecting your business
On July 19, 2024, a faulty content configuration update for CrowdStrike’s Falcon Windows sensor caused widespread Windows system crashes. While Microsoft estimated that fewer than 1% of Windows devices were affected, around 8.5 million machines, the incident is considered one of the most significant IT outages in history with estimated losses around $5 billion.
For coaches, consultants, and eCommerce businesses, the impact was immediate: critical services like payment processing, email, and inventory management became inaccessible, disrupting daily operations.
The initial fix required administrative access and Windows system expertise, resources that most solopreneurs and small business owners don’t have.
Simple Ways to Safeguard Your Business
You can’t plan for everything, but you can make sure your business bounces back quickly if something goes wrong:
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Back up your important files regularly – Think of it as insurance for your business data.
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Don’t put all your eggs in one basket – Spread out your tools so one crash doesn’t stop everything.
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Be smart with updates – Keep software current but double-check big changes before rolling them out.
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Keep an eye on performance – Slow systems or glitches are often early warning signs.
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Create a “what if” playbook – Write down what to do if payments, emails, or systems go down so you’re not scrambling.
Taking small steps now makes your business more resilient later. If you want to feel confident your systems won’t leave you stranded during the next big outage, book a free discovery call and we’ll help you put the right protections in place.