Global IT Outage Causes Chaos: Businesses And Services Grapple With Widespread Disruption

Posted by: lukwago J in Tech July 20, 2024

Businesses and services around the world are slowly recovering after a massive IT outage affected computer systems for hours on Thursday and Friday. Banks, hospitals, airlines, and other industries were among the worst-hit after cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike issued a faulty software update, disrupting Microsoft Windows.

Amidst the chaos, Crowdstrike’s CEO issued an apology for the disruption, assuring that a fix had been issued. However, he acknowledged that it might take some time before all systems are fully restored.

While some airline services are starting to return to normal, delays and cancellations are expected to persist through the weekend.

Backlogs and missed orders pose challenges for businesses

Many businesses are now grappling with backlogs and missed orders that could take days to resolve. Health services in Britain, Israel, and Germany also suffered problems, resulting in the cancellation of some operations.

The extent of the disruption has raised concerns about the vulnerability of interconnected technologies and the impact of a single software glitch.

The issue originated at 19:00 GMT on Thursday, primarily affecting Windows users running Crowdstrike Falcon cybersecurity software. By Friday evening, the problems were easing in many parts of the world, although check-in and payment systems at airports still faced issues.

Crowdstrike’s CEO assured customers that recovery efforts were underway, but acknowledged that some systems may take longer to recover.

Reboots, device updates, and questions raised

Microsoft has advised several reboots, with some users reporting the need for up to 15 reboots to resolve the problem. Tech experts highlight that Crowdstrike’s fix must be applied individually to each affected device.

The incident raises questions about the influence of Crowdstrike, one of the largest players in the cybersecurity market, and the potential risks associated with having a small number of companies controlling critical aspects of the industry.

Air travel disruptions and ripple effects

The problems were first noticed in Australia and had a significant impact on the air travel industry. Delays, cancellations, grounded aircraft, and stranded passengers caused chaos at airports.

Extra staff were brought in to manually check-in passengers. By 18:00 GMT, aviation data indicated that over 4,000 flights, accounting for 3.9% of the total, had been canceled on Friday.

Payment systems, banking services, healthcare providers, and other sectors worldwide were also affected by the outage.

Aside from the immediate disruption, companies may face challenges in paying wages to staff, particularly if payments are made on a weekly basis.

Some railway companies warned of delays, while broadcasters such as Sky News and ABC Australia experienced their own outages, further adding to the widespread impact of the IT outage.

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