| Recurring |
multiple_organization |
(a) The software failure incident having happened again at one_organization:
The incident mentioned in the article is not specifically linked to a previous incident within the same organization. The outage experienced by various companies like HSBC, ITV, Waitrose, Barclays, TSB, Bank of Scotland, Tesco Bank, Sainsbury’s Bank, Airbnb, PlayStation Network, and Steam was attributed to a glitch related to Akamai's Edge DNS service. This incident was not directly connected to a previous failure within the same organization [116529].
(b) The software failure incident having happened again at multiple_organization:
The article mentions a similar outage that occurred six weeks prior, affecting prominent websites including gov.uk. In that previous incident, the US-based company Fastly experienced issues due to an "undiscovered software bug" triggered by a single unnamed customer who updated their settings. This indicates that software failure incidents have occurred at multiple organizations, with Fastly being one of them [116529]. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design |
(a) The software failure incident mentioned in the articles seems to be related to the design phase. The incident was attributed to a performance product offered by Akamai, an American firm, which began investigating issues just after 5 pm UK time. Akamai's Edge DNS service, designed to improve loading times and combat attacks, experienced a glitch affecting various websites and services [116529].
(b) The articles do not provide specific information indicating that the software failure incident was due to factors introduced by the operation or misuse of the system. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system |
(a) within_system: The software failure incident mentioned in the article was related to a widespread outage affecting various websites and online services. The issue was linked to a performance product offered by Akamai, a company that provides Edge DNS services to improve loading times and combat attacks. Akamai began investigating the issues and implemented a fix to resume normal operations. The incident was not attributed to a cyber-attack on the Akamai platform, indicating that the failure originated within the system itself [116529].
(b) outside_system: The software failure incident was not attributed to an external cyber-attack on the Akamai platform. Instead, it was related to a performance product offered by Akamai, which experienced issues affecting various websites and online services. The incident was not caused by an attack from outside the system but rather by internal factors related to the Akamai service [116529]. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident was attributed to a non-human action. The outage affecting various websites, including HSBC, ITV, Waitrose, Barclays, TSB, Bank of Scotland, Tesco Bank, Sainsbury’s Bank, Airbnb, PlayStation Network, and Steam, was caused by a widespread glitch. Akamai, a performance product provider, was investigating issues related to its Edge DNS service, which is designed to enhance loading times and combat attacks. The problem was not a result of a cyber-attack on the Akamai platform, indicating a non-human factor in the failure incident [116529].
(b) The articles do not mention any contributing factors introduced by human actions in the software failure incident. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
software |
(a) The software failure incident reported in the article is not attributed to hardware issues but rather to a glitch in the software systems. The outage affecting various websites and services, including online banking services, Airbnb, PlayStation Network, and Steam, was linked to a performance product offered by Akamai, a software company. Akamai's Edge DNS service, designed to improve loading times and combat attacks, experienced issues that led to the disruption [116529].
(b) The software failure incident was primarily caused by contributing factors originating in software, specifically related to a glitch in Akamai's software system. The incident was not a result of hardware failure but rather a software bug within the Edge DNS service provided by Akamai [116529]. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
non-malicious |
(a) The software failure incident described in the articles does not appear to be malicious. It was attributed to a temporary glitch related to a performance product offered by Akamai, a company that provides services to improve loading times and combat attacks. Akamai stated that the issue was not a result of a cyber-attack on their platform [116529].
(b) The incident was linked to a non-malicious cause, specifically a software bug in the system of Fastly, another company that experienced a similar outage six weeks prior. Fastly mentioned that the issue was triggered by a single unnamed customer who updated their settings, indicating a non-malicious contributing factor [116529]. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
accidental_decisions |
(a) The software failure incident mentioned in the article does not directly point to poor decisions as the cause. Instead, it highlights issues related to a glitch in the Akamai service and an undiscovered software bug in Fastly's system, which were not explicitly linked to poor decisions [116529]. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
accidental |
(a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is not explicitly mentioned in the provided article.
(b) The software failure incident related to accidental factors is mentioned in the article. The incident involving the outage affecting various websites, including HSBC, ITV, Waitrose, Barclays, TSB, Bank of Scotland, Tesco Bank, Sainsbury’s Bank, Airbnb, PlayStation Network, and Steam, was attributed to a temporary glitch. The glitch was reportedly linked to a performance product offered by Akamai, an American firm. Akamai stated that the issue was not a result of a cyber-attack on their platform but rather a technical glitch that was resolved [116529]. |
| Duration |
temporary |
The software failure incident described in Article 116529 was temporary. It caused disruption to various websites and services, including online banking services, Airbnb, PlayStation Network, and Steam. The outage was linked to a performance product offered by Akamai, specifically their Edge DNS service. Akamai investigated the issues and implemented a fix, leading to the service resuming normal operations. The incident was not a result of a cyber-attack on the Akamai platform. This temporary glitch lasted for a short period before being resolved [116529]. |
| Behaviour |
crash |
(a) crash: The incident described in the article mentions a widespread outage that caused disruption on various websites, including major online banking services like Barclays, TSB, Bank of Scotland, Tesco Bank, and Sainsbury’s Bank, being either entirely or partially inaccessible for a short period. Additionally, services like Airbnb, PlayStation Network, and Steam also experienced the temporary glitch, with some showing users a DNS error. This behavior aligns with a crash where the system loses its state and fails to perform its intended functions [116529].
(b) omission: The article does not specifically mention any instances where the system omitted to perform its intended functions at an instance(s).
(c) timing: The article does not mention any instances where the system performed its intended functions correctly but too late or too early.
(d) value: The article does not mention any instances where the system performed its intended functions incorrectly.
(e) byzantine: The article does not mention any instances where the system behaved erroneously with inconsistent responses and interactions.
(f) other: The behavior described in the article aligns most closely with a crash, where the system lost its state and failed to perform its intended functions, affecting various websites and services [116529]. |