A major IT outage caused by issues with CrowdStrike software has caused havoc with computer systems around the world, with many countries and businesses reporting disruptions.
The outage has affected airport check-in systems, banks, supermarkets, media companies and even telecoms.
Microsoft has said it is taking “mitigation actions” in response to service issues, but it is unclear if this is linked to the global outages. The company says its services are still seeing continuous improvements.
The outage has hit hard in the transportation sector, with major US air carriers grounding all flights on Friday over a communication issue. Flights were also suspended at Berlin Brandenburg airport in Germany and all airports in Spain experienced disruptions. Hong Kong’s airport said some airlines had been affected, linking the disruption to a Microsoft outage.
In Australia, the outage has impacted banks and payment systems, forcing some supermarkets and petrol stations to close. Airport check-in systems have been disrupted and businesses have reported the “blue screen of death” and IT outages.
The Australian government says the outages are not the result of a cyber security incident but have been caused by a CrowdStrike update. CrowdStrike’s CEO says a defect in a recent update for Windows hosts has been identified and a fix has been deployed.
The prime minister says there has been no impact to critical infrastructure in Australia. Cyber security expert Alastair MacGibbon says the public should have some assurance knowing the outage is not a case of cybercrime.
