Worldwide IT outages: Numerous banks, airports and companies are at a standstill – but why?
from David Wurm 
on July 19, 2024, 10:34 | Write a comment
A faulty update to a software for Windows systems is causing massive IT outages worldwide. Thousands of computers, servers and other infrastructure are currently starting up with a blue screen. Microsoft itself with its Azure cloud, Microsoft 365 and some airports appear to be the most affected.
The rollout of a faulty update of the CrowdStrike software for its "Falcon Sensor" component has disrupted numerous computers around the world. Affected hosts are currently booting with an error message and the typical blue screen of death (BOD). The US cybersecurity company, which offers products for protecting end devices such as PCs and servers in a company, has already confirmed the error and withdrawn the update. Of course, this only helps those systems on which the update has not yet been installed.
This means that it is not, as other sources have falsely claimed, a direct error or failure on Microsoft's part. In addition, those who do not use CrowdStrike software, including mostly private individuals, are not affected.
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Workaround available, but requires manual intervention
CrowdStrike introduces Support portal There is now a workaround available, but this requires manual intervention on each affected system - since they can no longer be accessed remotely. This has also appeared on Reddit, since the support portal is only accessible after registration:
- Start Windows in Safe Mode or Windows Recovery Environment
- Go to C:\Windows\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike
- Find and delete file(s) with the pattern “C-00000291*.sys”
- Restart host normally
These are not really complicated steps, but they are tedious because they have to be carried out individually for each host.
Disruptions at Microsoft 365, Berlin & Vienna Airport, airlines and hospitals
Update on February 21.07rd: In total, the problem is said to have affected around 8,5 million Windows systems, Microsoft announced on Saturday informsThis is said to represent less than one percent of all devices running Windows.
Across the world, numerous airports are currently at a standstill and have to handle check-in manually. Banks, television stations and supermarkets - especially in the USA and Australia - are also affected by the IT outages. A look at Europe, or rather Germany and Austria - what is the situation like here?
Berlin Airport was also temporarily completely shut down – no flights could take off or land until shortly after 10:00 a.m. There are also Disruptions at Vienna Airport, which affect the check-in of individual airlines. At the moment, these have to be processed manually for the affected airlines Wizz Air, Ryan Air, Eurowings and Turkish Airlines. This could lead to significant delays in departure from Vienna.
Picture: TechnikNews/Screenshot
Lufthansa and its subsidiaries, such as Austrian Airlines, are also affected by their Amadeus IT systems. Austrian writes that due to a technical fault, "Accessing profiles and bookings is currently only possible to a limited extent. We are working on a solution and apologize for the inconvenience." Online check-in is currently not available for other airlines - but can sometimes be done (manually) at the airport.
In Austrian rail traffic, the ÖBB is currently affected by technical problems at the station in Bregenz. No trains can currently depart from there - long-distance trains are waiting for the closure and local services are cancelled. The establishment of a rail replacement service is also not possible at the moment, as the ÖBB on the timetable information schreibt.
Picture: TechnikNews/Screenshot
Even Microsoft's Azure cloud was only partially available to a limited extent, and there were problems accessing the Microsoft 365 Admin Center and selected Microsoft 365 services, according to the Status page In Austria, the Dornbirn Hospital in Vorarlberg is also affected in the health sector, as vorarlberg.orf.at reported. Non-urgent operations there currently have to be postponed and transferred to other hospitals.
What can you do right now?
As a private user, all you can do at the moment is wait until the desired service, i.e. the airport, the bank or the respective company, has fixed the problem. How long the fix takes depends on the size of the company and the number of systems. However, it could take several days for the IT outages to be resolved.
Some shops in America have even had to temporarily close their business because the cash registers are no longer working. Others are using manual methods: For example, an airport in India is currently issuing handwritten boarding passes, as an “Akshay Kothari” posted on X.
The Microsoft / CrowdStrike outage has taken down most airports in India. I got my first hand-written boarding pass today pic.twitter.com/xsdnq1Pgjr
— Akshay Kothari (@akothari) July 19, 2024