Tech
Microsoft Embarks on ‘Mitigation Actions’ Amid Global IT Outage
In response to a significant outage that disrupted computer systems worldwide on Friday, Microsoft announced it is implementing “mitigation actions” to address service issues.
The connection between these actions and the global outages remains unclear.
“Our services are still seeing continuous improvements while we continue to take mitigation actions,” Microsoft stated on social media platform X.
The outage earlier grounded flights in the United States, disrupted television broadcasts in the UK, and affected telecommunications in Australia.
CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity company, was unavailable for immediate comment.
Major US airlines, including Delta, United, and American Airlines, grounded all flights on Friday due to a communication issue, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
Berlin Brandenburg Airport in Germany suspended flights due to a “technical problem,” a spokeswoman told AFP.
“There are delays to check-in, and flight operations had to be cancelled until 10:00 am (0800 GMT),” the spokeswoman said, without providing a resumption time.
In Spain, all airports experienced “disruptions” from the IT outage that impacted several companies globally, reported airport operator Aena.
Hong Kong’s airport also reported some airlines were affected, linking the disruption to a Microsoft outage.
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The UK’s largest rail operator warned of potential train cancellations due to IT issues, while photos online showed large queues at Sydney Airport in Australia.
“Flights are currently arriving and departing; however, there may be some delays throughout the evening,” a Sydney Airport spokesman said. “We have activated our contingency plans with our airline partners and deployed additional staff to assist passengers.”
Australia’s National Cyber Security Coordinator stated the “large-scale technical outage” was due to an issue with a “third-party software platform,” with no current evidence of hacker involvement.
Sky News in the UK reported the glitch had disrupted its morning news broadcasts, while Australian broadcaster ABC also experienced a major “outage.”
Some self-checkout terminals at one of Australia’s largest supermarket chains displayed blue error messages, rendering them unusable.
New Zealand media reported issues with banks and computer systems within the country’s parliament.
Australian telecommunications firm Telstra suggested the outages were due to “global issues” with software from Microsoft and CrowdStrike.
University of Melbourne expert Toby Murray indicated the problem might be linked to a security tool called CrowdStrike Falcon.
“CrowdStrike is a global cybersecurity and threat intelligence company,” Murray explained. “Falcon is an endpoint detection and response platform, monitoring computers for intrusions (i.e., hacks) and responding to them.”
University of South Australia cybersecurity researcher Jill Slay predicted the global impact of the outages would be “enormous.”
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