CrowdStrike and Its CIA/NATO Connections

The "Blue Screen of Death." Did America just experience a Shot Across the Bow?

I rarely post an article twice in one day but after receiving a tip I thought this worth sharing so as to shed some light on the latest.

As many of you already know, earlier today, supposedly a faulty software update issued by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike led to a massive global IT disruption, affecting computers running Microsoft's Windows operating system and causing widespread outages across industries like airlines, banks, hospitals, and retailers. The buggy update caused Windows PCs to display the "blue screen of death" error and get stuck in a boot loop, requiring manual resets. CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz swears the issue was caused by a defect in a Falcon update for Windows hosts and was not a cyberattack.

Airports and more experience the “Blue Screen of Death”

However…. there may be more to the story than this.

This cybersecurity firm, CrowdStrike, has found itself at the center of a geopolitical storms in the past, entangled in everything from the 2016 DNC hack to CIA/NATO connections. I couldn't help but dig deeper into this. What I found was a company with deep ties to the U.S. intelligence community and a penchant for stirring up international controversy.

CROWDSTRIKE HISTORY & CONNECTIONS

CrowdStrike first burst onto the scene in 2016 when the DNC enlisted their services to investigate a breach of their servers. The firm quickly pointed the finger at Russia-Russia-Russia, contradicting claims of a lone wolf hacker and setting the stage for allegations of Kremlin election interference.

In a 2019 phone call with Ukrainian President Zelensky, then-President Trump suggested that Ukraine might possess the DNC server and questioned CrowdStrike's conclusion that Russia was behind the hack. Trump claimed that CrowdStrike was involved in a cover-up or had biased motivations due to co-founder Dmitri Alperovitch's Ukrainian heritage (he is a Russian-born U.S. citizen).

Curiously, CrowdStrike never provided the DNC's physical servers to the FBI, relying instead on "images" of the systems.

THE ATLANTIC COUNCIL & SWAMPY CONNECTIONS

CrowdStrike's co-founder, Dmitri Alperovitch, happens to be a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, a “think tank” with strong NATO ties. The same Atlantic Council that's been linked to a Ukrainian oligarch.

Coincidence?

CrowdStrike has also cozied up to the U.S. intelligence community - from the Pentagon, Oracle, to the CIA - participating in FBI cybersecurity forums and landing lucrative government contracts. All while shaping the narrative around “Russian cyber threats.”

THE BIG PICTURE

CrowdStrike, like so many cybersecurity firms, operates in the shadowy nexus of big tech, geopolitics, and the surveillance state. Their 2016 DNC investigation, rather than providing clarity, has only muddied the waters and fueled distrust.

As the recent CrowdStrike-linked global IT outage demonstrates, we've handed over immense power to these cybersecurity giants. They hold the keys to our digital infrastructure, while remaining shrouded in secrecy.

One can’t help but wonder perhaps this was less a defective update and more like a Shot Across the Bow letting Americans and the world know who is really in control.

It's high time we start asking tough questions about the cozy relationship between Silicon Valley and the intelligence community. Who benefits from firms like CrowdStrike stoking the flames of a new Cold War?

As always, the follow the money. And stay tuned - something tells me we haven't heard the last of CrowdStrike.