A major global outage of Microsoft’s Windows software has caused widespread disruption across multiple sectors, including airports, supermarkets, and banking services. The problem, which began early on Friday, affected crucial day-to-day services, leaving many users stuck at the infamous “Blue Screen of Death (BSoD).”
Unlike typical BSoD incidents that resolve quickly, this issue persisted for hours, affecting systems worldwide and causing significant inconvenience.
The root of the problem was identified as an error introduced by a content update from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, which impacted Microsoft’s system. CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz assured that it was a technical issue, not a cybersecurity threat.
Although Mac and Linux systems were unaffected, the incident led to a 15% drop in CrowdStrike’s shares on the Nasdaq, erasing $12.5 billion from the company’s market value.
The aviation sector was severely impacted, with nearly 1,400 flights canceled globally. Major airlines such as Delta, Turkish Airlines, Dutch Airlines, Qantas, and Indigo faced significant delays and cancellations.
Airports worldwide, including those in London, Zurich, Japan, New Zealand, India, and Amsterdam, struggled with technical issues, causing long queues and stranded passengers. The outage also affected UK supermarkets’ card payment systems and disrupted hospital operations in Germany and the UK.
CrowdStrike has apologized for the inconvenience and is working to fix the issue. Microsoft reported that the underlying problem has been addressed, but some residual effects persist.
The recovery process is expected to take some time, possibly days, before full normalcy is restored. Platforms like DownDetector show a decrease in reported issues, suggesting gradual improvement.
This incident highlights the significant dependence on Microsoft’s services globally. It underscores the need for diversifying dependencies and having robust backup systems in place to mitigate the impact of such outages.
Microsoft, aware of the critical reliance on its services, should implement stronger safeguards and contingency plans to prevent and minimize future disruptions.
