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Microsoft IT Outages Live: Millions of Windows Devices Impacted as CrowdStrike Updates on Fix

Microsoft IT Outages Live: Millions of Windows Devices Impacted as CrowdStrike Updates on Fix

Huge queues at airports as global IT outage causes chaos at Heathrow

According to Microsoft, millions of Windows devices were affected by the global IT outage caused by the botched CrowdStrike software update.

The company said 8.5 million devices – less than 1 percent of its Windows machines – were affected by the outage, which caused chaos when it shut down systems around the world on Friday.

An update to Crowdstrike was unveiled by Australia’s Home Affairs Minister on Sunday. Clare O’Neil wrote on X that the company has told the federal government it is “now close to rolling out an automatic fix to the issue with their update,” allowing systems to come back online.

However, IT experts have warned that it could take weeks for the global technical infrastructure to be fully restored. Adam Leon Smith of BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT, said: “In some cases, the fix can be implemented very quickly. But if computers have reacted in a way that causes them to go into blue screens, that could take days and weeks.”

The massive disruption has included thousands of flight delays and cancellations. Hospitals, GPs, pharmacies, banks, supermarkets and millions of businesses have also been affected.

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Australia warns of malicious websites after cyber outage

Australia’s cyber intelligence agency has warned that “malicious websites and unofficial code” are being put online claiming to help recover from Friday’s global digital blackout.

Australia was one of many countries hit by the outage, which affected media, retailers, banks and airlines, and caused global chaos after a botched CrowdStrike software update.

On Saturday, the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), Australia’s cyber intelligence agency, reported that “a number of malicious websites and unofficial code are being released claiming to help organisations recover from the widespread outages caused by the CrowdStrike technical incident”.

On its website, the agency says its Cybersecurity Center “strongly encourages all consumers to obtain their technical information and updates only from official CrowdStrike sources.”

Cyber ​​Security Minister Clare O’Neil said on social media platform X on Saturday that Australians should be “on the lookout for potential scams and phishing attempts”.

Friday’s outage hit Commonwealth Bank of Australia, the country’s largest bank, which said some customers were unable to make PayID payments, a problem later resolved. Flag carrier Qantas and Sydney Airport said planes were delayed but still flying.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Friday night that there were no impacts to critical infrastructure, government services or emergency telephone systems.

Tara CobhamJuly 21, 2024 09:12

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CrowdStrike provides update on ‘automatic fix’, Australian Home Affairs Minister reveals

The Australian Minister for Home Affairs has announced that Crowdstrike is “now close to rolling out an automatic fix for the issue with their update”.

Clare O’Neil said the company responsible for the biggest IT outage ever has told the federal government it is only a matter of time before a fix is ​​found and systems can be brought back online.

She wrote on social media platform X on Sunday: “CrowdStrike informed the meeting this morning that they are now close to rolling out an automatic fix for the issue with their update, as is Microsoft. This should increase the speed at which systems across the economy are back online.”

Tara CobhamJuly 21, 2024 08:45

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NHS warns of continued disruption to GP care next week due to global IT outage

Alexander ButlerJuly 21, 2024 07:00

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A third of UK pharmacy deliveries affected by global IT outage, officials say

A global IT outage has affected a third of medicine deliveries to pharmacies in England, leaving thousands of GP surgeries and hospitals across the country in disarray and reporting a critical incident.

GPs, pharmacies and NHS 111 services across the country faced major disruption on Friday after an update from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike caused Microsoft Windows systems to crash.

The IT bug affected EMIS, which is used by approximately 60 percent of GP practices (3,700) to consult patient records, book appointments and write prescriptions.

Alexander ButlerJuly 21, 2024 05:00

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Massive IT outage shows how vulnerable services are, expert says

A widespread IT outage affecting sectors including the NHS, transport, banking and media has been described as an unprecedented sign of how vulnerable services are and how reliant they may be on certain operating systems.

According to cybersecurity expert Dr. Harjinder Lallie, the major disruption could lead to a rethink of whether the most resilient operating systems are being used and whether it is ‘lazy’ to stick with what we know.

The senior lecturer at the University of Warwick described the situation as an IT “catastrophe”.

Alexander ButlerJuly 21, 2024 04:00

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IT outage affects two-thirds of GP practices in Northern Ireland

Alexander ButlerJuly 21, 2024 03:00

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Global IT Outage: What Happened and When Will It Be Fixed?

Alexander ButlerJuly 21, 2024 02:00

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Millions of people could face delays in their payouts as global IT outage hits payroll software

Payroll companies are warning that employees worldwide may not be paid on time due to a major IT outage causing global chaos.

The IT outage has led to queues and delays at airports, disruption to GP services and payment problems in some stores.

Cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike is “actively working” to fix a “defect” in an update for Microsoft Windows users that caused the outage.

Alexander ButlerJuly 21, 2024 01:00

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Passenger receives handwritten boarding pass during Microsoft outage

Alexander ButlerJuly 20, 2024 10:30 PM

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Bombay Bicycle Club postpones festival date they missed due to global IT outage

Indie rock band Bombay Bicycle Club have announced a new date for a music festival performance they were forced to miss due to the global IT outage.

The British group, consisting of Jack Steadman, Jamie MacColl, Suren de Saram and Ed Nash, were due to perform at the Poolbar Festival in the Austrian town of Feldkirch on Friday, but missed the show due to a cancelled flight.

On Friday evening, they wrote in a post on Instagram: “Unfortunately our flights to the Poolbar Festival show tonight have been cancelled due to an IT glitch.

Alexander ButlerJuly 20, 2024 9:30 PM