Causes of Microsoft Down and What are the Impacts, Is Indonesia Affected?
Windows Blue Screens. PHOTO/Special
HOLIDAY NEWS - The topic about Microsoft down went viral on social media. Many Microsoft users have complained that their devices display a blue screen after updating. So, what are the causes and impacts? Is Indonesia affected?
Microsoft, via the X account @MSFT365Status, periodically uploads statements regarding the problems users are facing. They said that their party was conducting an investigation and trying to overcome this problem.
"We are still observing positive trends in service availability while we continue to divert impacted traffic," wrote Microsoft today, Friday (19/7/2024) at 09.29 WIB.
Microsoft explains that their mitigation efforts continue to increase. Their latest information states that the main cause has been successfully fixed, but residual impacts are still being felt by users in a number of Microsoft services.
"The root cause has been fixed, however, residual impacts continue to affect some Microsoft 365 applications and services. We are implementing additional mitigation to provide assistance," wrote Microsoft, today, Friday (19/7/2024) at 17.46 WIB.
Causes of Microsoft Down
It was explained by Microsoft that this access problem was due to a problem with the latest update to the CrowdStrike Falcon Sensor software.
They said that the initial root cause of Microsoft going down was because there had been a configuration change in some of Microsoft's Azure backend workloads.
This causes interference between storage and compute resources, resulting in connectivity failures that impact downstream Microsoft 365 services that depend on those connections.
Cybersecurity company CrowdStrike said that the cause of Microsoft's downfall was not a security incident or cyberattack.
CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz posted on social media platform X that the company is “actively working with customers impacted by the flaw discovered in a single content update for Windows hosts.”
“This is not a security incident or cyber attack. "The problem has been identified, isolated, and a fix has been implemented," he said.
What are the impacts of Microsoft Down?
Microsoft users around the world are complaining about “blue screen” problems. This access disruption impacts a number of services that use Microsoft for their operations ranging from airlines, television channels, to banking.
New Zealand's acting Prime Minister, David Seymour, said in X that officials in the country were "moving quickly to understand the potential impact" of the global problem.
“At this time I have not received any reports indicating that this issue is related to malicious cybersecurity activity,” Seymour wrote. The issue causes “discomfort” for people and businesses, he added.
Quoted from a report from AP News, in the United States, the FAA said the impact of Microsoft's downtime resulted in United, American, Delta and Allegiant airlines being grounded.
The DownDectector website, which tracks user-reported cases, noted increased constraints on services at Visa, ADT security, and Amazon
British airlines, trains and television stations also experienced disruption due to computer problems. Budget airline Ryanair, train operators TransPennine Express and Govia Thameslink Railway, as well as television station Sky News were among those affected.
“We are currently experiencing network-wide disruption due to a global third-party IT outage which is beyond our control,” Ryanair said. “We advise all passengers to arrive at the airport at least three hours before their scheduled departure time.”
Edinburgh Airport said the system disruption caused waiting times to be longer than usual. London Stansted Airport said some airline check-in services were manual, but flights were still operating.
Wider problems were reported at Australian airports, where queues grew longer and some passengers were stranded as online check-in services and self-service outlets were disabled. Passengers in Melbourne queued for more than an hour to check in, even though flights were still operating.
Airline operations in India were disrupted, affecting thousands of people. Private airline IndiGo told passengers on board X that Microsoft down on Friday impacted the airline's operations.
Hospitals in Britain and Germany also reported problems. Several practices within the National Health Service in England reported that a power outage had hit their clinical computer systems that contain medical records and are used for scheduling.
“We do not have access to patients' clinical records so cannot book appointments or provide information,” Church Lane Surgery at Brighouse in the North of England said on social media platform X. “This is a national issue and is being addressed as a top priority.”
In northern Germany, Schleswig-Holstein University Hospital, which has branches in Kiel and Luebeck, said it had canceled all elective operations scheduled for Friday, but patients and emergency care were unaffected.
News outlets in Australia, including ABC and Sky News, were unable to broadcast on their TV and radio channels, and reported Windows-based computers shutting down unexpectedly. Some newscasters broadcast live online from darkened offices, in front of computers showing a “blue screen of death.”
In South Africa, at least one major bank said it was experiencing a “nationwide service disruption” as customers reported they were unable to make payments using their bank cards at grocery stores and petrol stations. New Zealand banks, ASB and Kiwibank, said their services were down.
Was Indonesia Affected by Microsoft's Downfall?
The impact of the Microsoft down in Indonesia has not been widely reported and is not as shocking as abroad. But a number of users said via social media that they also experienced this because they used Crowdstrike.
User X @LawrenceGS uploaded the status “Global systemic failure. How come Crowdstrike can take down Windows PC & so many public services worldwide? "Is Indonesia affected?" he wrote.
His upload was then commented on by several other users who claimed to have been affected by Microsoft's downtime.
“I got hit but because I used Crowdstrike. Just delete 1 file so far. Still running smoothly. Earlier, if you didn't do anything, the blue screen went 7 times. "Can't enter the home screen login," answered X account user @CrazeQuantum.
"My office was hit hahaha," said X account user @zal_AK13.
A number of X users said that the Microsoft down problem only applies to users who use Crowdstrike, while ordinary users do not feel the impact.
"This is more for Crowdstrike users, normal users don't experience this problem," wrote user X @Twenty_indo.
"Indonesia is safe from the impact of the CrowdStrike Falcon update, because we don't use endpoint security, XDR, etc. "At least the impact is being hit by ransomware," wrote user X @dwisiswant0.