Today, an ongoing IT outage global in scale is currently causing widespread disruptions throughout services for airlines, TV networks, and banks as a reported error with CrowdStrike’s security software has plunged PCs, servers, and enterprise terminals into chaos.Companies and people around the world are suffering from crashes within Windows leading to Blue Screen of Death (BSoD) messages highlighting the error: ‘DRIVER_OVERRAN_STACK_BUFFER’The issue, initially surfacing after widespread reports from Australia, is now being experiences across the UK and Europe, with those in the US waking up to find similar issues in what may be the biggest global IT outage in recent history.This story is developing and the contents of this page may change as more information becomes available.Windows/CrowdStrike outage: How it affects youToday’s outage is so widespread that there are service disruptions affecting everything from entire TV networks to local business owners who reply on larger companies such as banks or credit card companies who are currently experiencing issues.While these errors are unlikely to directly affect personal computers, you may experience knock on effects of businesses currently being impacted by today’s outage. In the UK, one TV network has been heavily impacted by the outage, with one of the country’s top news channels Sky News having been completely shut down.With banks also facing issues, app access or online services may also be affected, as too could stores and supermarkets be as payment problems are another potential issue. In Australia, stores are reportedly closing due to checkout terminals also suffering from BSoD issues.Get our in-depth reviews, helpful tips, great deals, and the biggest news stories delivered to your inbox.TECH OUTAGE: Self service machines across Woolworths supermarkets are not operational. Blue screen of death. #crowdstrike pic.twitter.com/RS42zcEQi2July 19, 2024Airlines seem to have been most affected with flight disruptions reportedly taking place in around the globe, with Delta, United, and American Airlines grounding flights in the US over reported communication issues.An image shared by Future Publishing Exec Kevin Addley shows the BSoD issue currently impacting display boards and causing delays and disruptions at JFK airport, a situation many seeking to travel today may become familiar with unless the issue is quickly resolved.Windows errors appear on travel boards at JFK airport amid ongoing service disruptions to business and services. (Image credit: Future / Kevin Addley)Windows/CrowdStrike outage: What is causing the issue?While the outage is currently ongoing, and a cause has not (as of yet) been confirmed, reports suggest that today’s ongoing problems are not the result of a cyber attack. Instead, according to several security analysts, a potentially untested update to security firm CrowdStrike’s Falcon software could be the most likely culprit.The list of companies relying on CrowdStrike’s security software is vast, and we’re currently seeing reports from around the internet of mass service disruptions across the board. Service disruption tracking website DownDetector shows user reports spiking for services involving Amazon Web Services, VISA, Bank of America, and more.The Crowdstrike issue might be the largest IT outage in history.It’s like Y2K, except it actually happened this time.Wild times! pic.twitter.com/cim15V1Do1July 19, 2024What is CrowdStrike?CrowdStrike, the name presumed (but not confirmed) to be at the center of today’s widespread issues, isn’t a virus or malicious app but instead a security company ironically tasked with preventing internet breaches against some of the world’s largest companies — including Microsoft, who use the brand’s Falcon software as a part of the Windows platform.CrowdStrike Falcon is an enterprise-grade software used by companies and services to prevent virus infections, intrusions, and various cyber threats.Is there a way to fix the problem?According to emails sent to TechRadar and several other publishers, Tesserent Cyber Solutions suggest that today’s ongoing IT struggles can be resolved.The email states: “CrowdStrike have deployed a new content update which resolves the previously erroneous update and subsequent host issues. As your devices receive this update you may need to reboot for the changes to take effect and for the blue screen (BSOD) issues to be resolved.”Pointing at any further issues those affected by today’s outage may face, Tesserent has the following to share: “If hosts are still crashing and unable to stay online to receive the Channel File Changes, the following steps can be used to workaround this issue:”1. Boot Windows into Safe Mode or the Windows Recovery Environment””2. Navigate to the C:\Windows\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike directory””3. Locate the file matching “C-00000291*.sys”, and delete it.””4. Boot the host normally.”However, this information has not yet been verified as accurate or complete in its ability to solve today’s ongoing problems.More from Laptop MagBack to Apple MacBook ProSORT BYPrice (low to high)Price (high to low)Product Name (A to Z)Product Name (Z to A)Retailer name (A to Z)Retailer name (Z to A)Load more deals
