There are reports of IT outages affecting major institutions in Australia and internationally.
The ABC is experiencing a major network outage, along with several other media outlets.
Here’s what we know.
What happened?
A technical issue, reportedly related to a US-based cybersecurity firm named CrowdStrike, caused Microsoft laptops across Australia and abroad to glitch on Friday afternoon.
The global outage impacted a raft of Australian companies and government agencies, causing many laptops to attempt to restart and display a blue screen error message.
The outage impacted telco providers, media websites, banks and airlines, and is believed to have impacted servers.
The cause of the outage is believed to be due to a software update by CrowdStrike, which launched earlier this week.
Outages were recorded in the US and New Zealand ahead of the Australia-wide shut down.
Who and what is affected?
The technical issue is affecting Windows PC users globally.
On its X, Microsoft said it was investigating the issue, which appears to be affecting Microsoft 365 apps and services.
Users are reporting seeing the Blue Screen of Death error messages across banking institutions, supermarkets and media companies including the ABC.
The global outage forced airlines in the US to ground flights,
South Australia’s power operation company SA Power Networks says it has been impacted by the outage.
“We are currently working to understand and resolve the issue,” a SA Power Network statement says.
The company has urged customers to report power outages on their website and safety issues, such as downed electrical wires, on 13 13 61.
What is CrowdStrike?
CrowdStrike, a US-based company, is among the largest cybersecurity companies in the world.
Australian cybersecurity company CyberCX has said it’s aware of the outage and is advising its customers in Australia and New Zealand.
“We understand that this has been caused by an issue affecting organisations who have installed CrowdStrike Falcon in their IT environments,” a CyberCX spokesperson said.
“CrowdStrike is a global cybersecurity company who provide detection and monitoring tools to cyber and IT teams.
“At this time, CyberCX is actively tracking the situation and are awaiting information detailing scope and recovery.
“We will continue to support affected customers as this incident evolves.”
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