Global Microsoft Meltdown Tied to Bad Crowdstrike Update

## Faulty Software Update from CrowdStrike Cripples Windows Computers Worldwide

Today, a faulty software update from cybersecurity company CrowdStrike caused major disruptions worldwide. The update affected countless Microsoft Windows computers, impacting everything from airline travel and financial institutions to hospitals and businesses. While CrowdStrike has issued a fix, experts warn that recovery could take some time, as the solution must be applied manually to each affected machine.


### The Incident

The trouble began earlier today when an incorrect update from CrowdStrike started causing Windows machines to display the dreaded "Blue Screen of Death." This error rendered the systems unusable. As with most security software, CrowdStrike needs deep integration with the Windows operating system to protect against digital threats, making a small coding mistake potentially catastrophic.

CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz announced on Twitter/X that an update correcting the error had been shipped. He clarified that Mac and Linux systems were not affected. "This is not a security incident or cyberattack," Kurtz emphasized. "The issue has been identified, isolated, and a fix has been deployed."

### Recovery Steps

To fix the issue, CrowdStrike's threat hunting operations director advised users to boot Windows into Safe Mode or the Windows Recovery Environment (Windows RE), delete the file "C-00000291*.sys," and then restart the machine.

### Impact on Services

The incident may have been exacerbated by recent outages with Microsoft's Azure cloud services, though it remains unclear if these problems are related to the CrowdStrike update. The New York Times reports that Microsoft confirmed the Azure issues were unrelated.


### Global Disruptions

According to Matt Burgess at Wired, the faulty update affected various health care and emergency services worldwide. Medical providers reported issues with their Windows-linked systems on social media and their websites. 

- **US Emergency Alert System:** Reported 911 outages in several states.

- **Germany's University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein:** Canceled some non-urgent surgeries at two locations.

- **Israel:** Over a dozen hospitals and pharmacies were affected, with ambulances being rerouted to unaffected medical organizations.

In the United Kingdom, NHS England confirmed that appointment and patient record systems were impacted. Wired reports that a hospital declared a "critical" incident after a third-party IT system was affected. Train operators also reported delays across the network due to the outage.

### Social Media Reactions

Reactions on social media were swift and critical. Images of airports filled with computer screens showing the blue screen error flooded Twitter/X. Many users criticized CrowdStrike's CEO for not apologizing for the disruption, while others noted that an apology could lead to lawsuits.

Interestingly, Twitter/X's artificial intelligence bots misinterpreted the social media posts. The AI summarized the sarcastic posts from cybersecurity professionals pretending to be new employees at CrowdStrike into a positive story about the company, which became the top discussion on Twitter this morning.

"Several individuals have recently started working at the cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike and have expressed their excitement and pride in their new roles," the AI summary read. "They have shared their experiences of pushing code to production on their first day and are looking forward to positive outcomes in their work."

### Conclusion

Today's incident highlights the significant impact a software error can have on global systems and services. While CrowdStrike has provided a solution, the manual nature of the fix means that it will take time for affected systems to be fully operational again. As cybersecurity continues to evolve, this event serves as a reminder of the importance of rigorous testing and swift response mechanisms in the tech industry.