Validation steps? New release? Things don’t really work like that anymore. The modern world is constant updates, generally weekly or biweekly. And all it takes is for one thing to have a hardcoded path that’s accurate on the staging system but not in production and the whole things poops the bed.
Heck, install it on a Windows PC and look for the bsod?
Looks like the failure was widespread and not selective. Then again, I don't have the full details. Widespread implies a very obvious “gross” bug. And it is not just a bug that makes the computer vulnerable. It kills the computer.
True cyber security experts tell us to not install this kind of software. Us being average folks. It installs itself in the OS at a very low level and I can see how it might bsod the computers. Norton, etc.
I think that Microsoft will have to change their control-freak update methods. Pushing out the same update to millions of computers at once is a recipe for disaster. CrowdStrike made the initial mistake but the core of the problem is the mass updates all at once around the world. Big customers are going to demand it.