Incident: Glitch in Google ITA Software Affects U.S. Airline Websites

Published Date: 2021-04-05

Postmortem Analysis
Timeline 1. The software failure incident happened on April 5, 2021. [113241, 113850]
System [Article 113241, Article 113850] 1. ITA software by Google - The software that powers ticketing and other services on many U.S. airline websites, including Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, and United Airlines, experienced a glitch causing issues with flight bookings and fare information.
Responsible Organization 1. Google [113241, 113850]
Impacted Organization 1. Delta Air Lines [113241, 113850] 2. United Airlines [113241, 113850] 3. American Airlines [113241]
Software Causes 1. The software failure incident was caused by a glitch in the technology provided to Delta and multiple airlines by Google [113241]. 2. The issue was related to a data error that impacted the flight shopping software, preventing airline partners and Google Flights from showing fare information [113241]. 3. The software issue was specifically related to Google's ITA software, which powers ticketing and other services on many U.S. airline websites [113241, 113850].
Non-software Causes 1. The failure incident was caused by a glitch in the technology provided to Delta and multiple airlines by Google, affecting flight bookings on their websites and mobile apps [113241]. 2. The issue was related to Google's ITA software, which powers ticketing and other services on many U.S. airline websites, impacting Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, and United Airlines [113850].
Impacts 1. The software failure incident caused a glitch that prevented flight bookings on the websites of Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines, affecting more than 800 users [113241]. 2. Users faced difficulties in purchasing flight tickets through the carrier's mobile app and reservations call center [113241]. 3. The data error impacted the flight shopping software, preventing airline partners and Google Flights from showing fare information [113241]. 4. United Airlines reported that the software was down for just under two hours, although customers could still book over the phone [113241]. 5. American Airlines flagged a technical issue by a third-party vendor, but flight operations were not impacted, and customers could still check in for flights through the company's website [113241].
Preventions 1. Implementing thorough testing procedures before deploying software updates or changes could have potentially prevented the software failure incident [113241, 113850]. 2. Conducting regular audits and monitoring of third-party software providers to ensure their systems are robust and reliable could have helped prevent such incidents [113241]. 3. Having a backup system or contingency plan in place to quickly switch to an alternative solution in case of software failures could have mitigated the impact of the incident [113241].
Fixes 1. Implementing a fix by Google to the ITA software [113241, 113850] 2. Monitoring the situation to ensure full resolution [113241]
References 1. Delta Air Lines spokesperson [Article 113241] 2. Google spokesperson [Article 113241] 3. United Airlines [Article 113241] 4. American Airlines [Article 113241] 5. Downdetector.com [Article 113241] 6. People familiar with the matter [Article 113850]

Software Taxonomy of Faults

Category Option Rationale
Recurring one_organization, multiple_organization (a) The software failure incident related to Google's ITA software impacting flight bookings on airline websites has happened again at Delta Air Lines. The glitch preventing flight bookings was caused by a failure of technology provided to Delta and multiple airlines by Google [113241]. (b) The incident also affected other airlines besides Delta Air Lines. Users reported problems while using the websites of United Airlines and American Airlines as well [113241]. Additionally, reports indicated issues on the websites of Delta Air Lines and American Airlines due to the ITA software problem [113850]. United Airlines was also impacted by the issue [113850].
Phase (Design/Operation) design (a) The software failure incident in the articles was related to the design phase. The glitch preventing flight bookings on the websites of Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines was caused by a failure of technology provided to the airlines by Google, specifically impacting the ITA software that powers ticketing and other services on many U.S. airline websites [113241, 113850]. This indicates that the issue was introduced during the system development or system updates phase, highlighting a design-related failure. (b) The software failure incident was not related to the operation phase. There was no mention in the articles of the failure being caused by the operation or misuse of the system. Instead, the focus was on a glitch in the technology provided by Google that affected the functionality of the airline websites, indicating a design-related issue [113241, 113850].
Boundary (Internal/External) within_system (a) The software failure incident reported in the news articles was primarily within the system. The glitch preventing flight bookings on the websites of Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines was caused by a failure of technology provided to the airlines by Google, specifically related to the ITA software that powers ticketing and other services on the websites of many U.S. airlines [113241, 113850]. The issue originated from within the system, affecting the functionality of the airlines' websites and mobile apps, as well as their reservations call centers. The software error impacted the display of fare information and made it difficult for users to purchase flight tickets online. The incident was resolved after Google implemented a fix to mitigate the issue within the system.
Nature (Human/Non-human) non-human_actions (a) The software failure incident in this case was attributed to a glitch in the technology provided to Delta and multiple airlines by Google, specifically related to the ITA software that powers ticketing and other services on many U.S. airline websites [113241, 113850]. This glitch caused issues with flight bookings on the websites of Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines, impacting over 800 users. The problem was identified as a data error that affected the flight shopping software, preventing fare information from being displayed on airline partners' websites and Google Flights. Google acknowledged the issue with its software and implemented a fix to mitigate the problem. (b) The articles do not mention any specific human actions that directly contributed to the software failure incident. The focus is primarily on the glitch in the technology provided by Google and the impact it had on the airline websites and flight booking services.
Dimension (Hardware/Software) software (a) The software failure incident reported in the news articles was primarily due to a software issue. Delta Air Lines mentioned that the glitch preventing flight bookings was caused by the failure of technology provided by Google, affecting not only Delta but also other airlines like United Airlines and American Airlines [113241]. Google confirmed that there was an issue with its ITA software, which powers ticketing and other services on many U.S. airline websites [113850]. (b) The software failure incident was not attributed to hardware issues but rather to a glitch in the software provided by Google. There was no mention of hardware-related contributing factors in the articles.
Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) non-malicious (a) The software failure incident in the articles was non-malicious. It was caused by a glitch in the technology provided by Google to Delta Air Lines and other airlines, impacting flight bookings and fare information display on their websites and apps [113241, 113850]. The issue was attributed to a data error in the flight shopping software, and Google confirmed that they were working to implement a fix to resolve the problem. There was no indication in the articles that the failure was due to malicious intent or actions.
Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) accidental_decisions (a) The software failure incident was not due to poor decisions but rather a glitch in the technology provided by Google to Delta and multiple airlines, affecting flight bookings and fare information display on their websites and apps [113241, 113850]. The issue was attributed to a data error in the flight shopping software, causing difficulties in purchasing flight tickets and impacting the ITA software that powers ticketing services on various U.S. airline websites. The incident was not a result of poor decisions but rather a technical glitch in the software provided by Google.
Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) development_incompetence (a) The software failure incident in the articles was related to a glitch in the ITA software provided by Google, which powers ticketing and other services on many U.S. airline websites. This glitch caused issues with flight bookings on the websites of Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines [113241, 113850]. The incident was attributed to a failure of technology provided by Google to multiple airlines, indicating a potential failure due to development incompetence, as the glitch was a result of a data error impacting the flight shopping software [113241]. (b) The articles do not provide specific information indicating that the software failure incident was accidental.
Duration temporary The software failure incident reported in the news articles was temporary. The glitch preventing flight bookings on the websites of Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines was resolved after Google found an issue with its ITA software that powers ticketing and other services on many U.S. airline websites. The issue lasted for a certain period, with United Airlines mentioning that the software appeared to have been down for just under two hours [113241, 113850].
Behaviour omission, other (a) crash: The software failure incident in the articles did not involve a crash where the system lost state and did not perform any of its intended functions. The issue was related to a glitch preventing flight bookings on airline websites powered by Google's ITA software [113241, 113850]. (b) omission: The software failure incident did involve an omission where the system omitted to perform its intended functions at an instance(s). Users reported problems while using the websites of Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines, making it difficult to purchase flight tickets and check-in for flights [113241]. (c) timing: The software failure incident did not involve a timing issue where the system performed its intended functions correctly but too late or too early. (d) value: The software failure incident did not involve a value issue where the system performed its intended functions incorrectly. (e) byzantine: The software failure incident did not involve a byzantine behavior where the system behaved erroneously with inconsistent responses and interactions. (f) other: The other behavior observed in this software failure incident was a data error that impacted the flight shopping software, preventing fare information from being displayed on airline websites and Google Flights. This data error was mentioned as the cause of the issue [113241].

IoT System Layer

Layer Option Rationale
Perception None None
Communication None None
Application None None

Other Details

Category Option Rationale
Consequence no_consequence (a) unknown (b) unknown (c) unknown (d) unknown (e) unknown (f) unknown (g) no_consequence (h) unknown (i) The software failure incident did not lead to any real observed consequences as mentioned in the articles.
Domain transportation, finance (a) The software failure incident reported in the articles is related to the transportation industry. The glitch affected the software that powers ticketing and other services on the websites of many U.S. airlines, including Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines [113241, 113850]. The issue caused difficulties in flight bookings, purchasing flight tickets, and checking in for flights through the airlines' websites and mobile apps [113241]. (h) Additionally, the incident involved a third-party vendor issue, indicating the involvement of external entities in providing technology solutions to airlines, which aligns with the finance industry's aspect of manipulating and moving money for profit [113241]. (m) The software failure incident could also be related to the technology industry, as it involved Google's ITA software, which powers ticketing and other services on airline websites [113241, 113850].

Sources

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