Windows Outages Caused by CrowdStrike Issue
If you’re currently facing the dreaded Blue Screen of Death on your Windows computer, don’t worry, you’re not alone. Windows outages are being reported globally, and it seems that the culprit behind these crashes is a CrowdStrike issue. CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity company, confirmed the outage in an alert and stated that their Falcon Sensor software, designed to prevent cyber attacks, is causing the crashes.
The Impact of the CrowdStrike Issue
While the CrowdStrike issue is specifically causing Windows to crash, its implications seem to be far-reaching. Given the popularity of Windows as an operating system and CrowdStrike as a cybersecurity company, multiple companies and services are experiencing outages due to their computers being down. Microsoft also acknowledged the issue, attributing it to a third-party software platform and assuring users that a resolution is forthcoming.
Global Outages and Affected Services
Reports of outages have come in from several countries worldwide, including the United States, Australia, New Zealand, India, Japan, and the UK. DownDetector, a crowdsourced outage monitor, shows a spike in issues across various platforms and businesses in the US, including Amazon Web Services, Instagram, eBay, Visa, ADT, and PlentyOfFish. Additionally, several US airlines such as American, Delta, and United Airlines have been grounded due to communication issues caused by the outage.
Impact on Emergency Services and Other Businesses
The outage has also affected hospitals and emergency services. Boston hospital Mass General Brigham had to cancel non-urgent surgeries and medical visits for the day. Alaskan State Troopers reported that many 911 and non-emergency call centers were not functioning correctly across the state. Supermarkets, banks, airlines, telecommunications companies, and TV broadcasters are among the other businesses impacted by the outage. In Australia, shoppers were unable to pay for groceries due to electronic payment systems being down.
Resolving the CrowdStrike Windows BSOD Issue
Fortunately, CrowdStrike has identified the update causing the issue and rolled it back. They have also provided a workaround for affected users, which involves booting into Safe Mode or the Windows Recovery Environment, navigating to a specific directory, locating and deleting a specific file, and then booting the host normally. However, implementing this solution across multiple companies globally will still take time.
Stock Plummet for CrowdStrike
As news of the outage spread, CrowdStrike’s stock plummeted by more than 21% in pre-market trading on Friday. This significant drop has resulted in a $16 billion decrease in the company’s market cap.
In conclusion, the widespread Windows outages caused by the CrowdStrike issue have had a significant impact on various industries and services globally. The swift response from CrowdStrike to identify and resolve the problem is commendable, but the process of restoring normalcy to affected systems will take time. Users and businesses affected by the outage must exercise patience while waiting for the issue to be fully resolved.