SCTI provides guidance following CrowdStrike outage

SCTI provides guidance following CrowdStrike outage | Insurance Business New Zealand

Cyber

SCTI provides guidance following CrowdStrike outage

Government races to manage impacts of global outage

Cyber

By
Roxanne Libatique

Southern Cross Travel Insurance (SCTI) has responded to the global IT outage that occurred on July 19 due to a software update from CrowdStrike.

The disruption impacted various industries, including transportation and logistics. As a result, SCTI advises travellers to contact their airlines or travel agents first to make alternative arrangements.

For those who are overseas and return trip is disrupted, SCTI said:

travel insurance will automatically extend until the customer safely returns home, without needing to contact SCTI
coverage includes certain additional expenses, such as accommodation and transportation, up to the policy limits
airlines will independently determine flight schedules. Customers should contact their airlines or tour operators for the latest updates
for alternative transport arrangements, customer should contact SCTI’s 24/7 emergency assistance team at +64 9 359 1600 to discuss options

For those whose departure from New Zealand is disrupted, SCTI said:

claims may be possible for expenses due to cancellations or changes, up to the selected policy limits
the policy will cover up to the specified amount, less the selected excess. These details are available in the Certificate of Insurance provided at the time of purchase

For policies purchased after 7pm (NZT) on July 19, no coverage is available for claims arising from the outage as it is not considered an unexpected event from this date and time.

Submitting a claim following CrowdStrike outage

The travel insurer said claims can be submitted via the online portal, My SCTI.

“Please keep all your receipts and invoices for any payments you have made. You can upload these when you submit your claim,” it said.

SCTI customer assistance following CrowdStrike outage

The insurer offers support through its 24-hour emergency assistance team at +64 9 359 1600 for those needing emergency medical help while traveling.

While not a Microsoft incident, the company has taken several steps to support affected customers. These include:

collaborating with CrowdStrike to develop and automate a solution
deploying engineers to assist in restoring services
coordinating with Google Cloud Platform and Amazon Web Services to share impact information and develop effective remediation approaches
providing regular updates through the Azure Status Dashboard and offering manual remediation documentation

The company also confirmed that the incident impacted 8.5 million Windows devices, or less than 1% of all Windows machines.

New Zealand government’s response to CrowdStrike outage

Acting Prime Minister David Seymour provided an update on the government’s response, confirming that the outage was due to a software glitch, not a malicious attack. Essential services remain operational, and systems are gradually being restored.

The National Emergency Management Agency is coordinating the government’s efforts to minimise the outage’s impact on New Zealand. The government will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates as needed.

“The government has worked quickly to understand the impacts of this issue and minimise them wherever possible,” Seymour said. “We appreciate the inconvenience this is causing for the public, retailers, and businesses. The government is closely monitoring developments and will continue to provide updates.”

Related Stories

Keep up with the latest news and events

Join our mailing list, it’s free!