(Paris) The situation is gradually returning to normal on Saturday after a major computer failure which caused chaos in airports and financial markets and even put workers out of work.
The cause: a faulty update on Microsoft’s Windows operating systems of an IT solution from the American cybersecurity group CrowdStrike, which rules out a cyberattack or an IT security problem.
“I want to personally apologize to all the organizations, groups and individuals who were affected” by the outage, CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz told CNBC.
This bug, which is currently being fixed, did not affect users of Mac and Linux systems.
For its part, Microsoft reported a “problem” causing a blue screen. “We recommend that customers follow the advice provided by CrowdStrike to resolve this situation,” added the American computer giant.
The scale of this outage is unprecedented and will undoubtedly go down in history.
Junade Ali, cybersecurity expert
It “directly impacts end-user computers and could require manual intervention to resolve, representing a significant challenge for IT teams globally.”
Many Asian airports reported “normal” or “near normal” activity as of Friday evening local time, including in South Korea, Singapore, New Zealand, Hong Kong and the Philippines.
However, some “residual issues” causing delays persist in Sydney and “five flights” operated by budget airline Jetstar to Japan will be disrupted on Saturday.
“Huge” failure
The update bug was triggered around 3 p.m. ET on Thursday, according to a Microsoft post.
PHOTO DAVE SANDERS, THE NEW YORK TIMES
A faulty point-of-sale system at a Key Foods grocery store in Brooklyn on July 19 in New York.
“This is one of the rare times that we find security software at the origin of such a huge failure,” said Kayssar Daher, another cybersecurity expert interviewed by AFP.
The scale of the phenomenon is explained by the fact that “Windows is extremely widespread and CrowdStrike too,” he adds.
After temporarily disrupting IT operations for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, including the accreditation system but not ticketing, activities “resumed normally” on Friday afternoon, according to organizers.
“The Paris 2024 IT system has not collapsed, so if there are a few malfunctions here and there, it’s a lesser evil,” a French sports movement executive told AFP.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said the outage “caused cardiac arrest in the automotive supply chain.”
Many airports and airlines reported problems on Friday. Passengers are being patient, especially in the northern hemisphere where many holidaymakers are departing or returning.
“We’re struggling to find another flight or a train, the other option is to sleep at the airport,” explained Anja Müller, a 22-year-old student who lives in Germany and spent a week in France, at Roissy, Paris’ main airport, on Friday.
While the Paris airport manager ADP assured that the breakdown spared its computer systems, the group acknowledged disruptions at Roissy and Orly, which are the two main entry points for foreign delegations at the Olympic Games.
In the United States, emergency services in at least three states were affected and 2,400 flights were cancelled on Friday, a number that could rise further.
PHOTO MANDEL NGAN, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
A screen shows canceled and delayed flights at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on July 19, 2024, in Arlington, Virginia, during a major global computer outage.
“According to our information, flights have resumed across the country but some congestion persists,” a government official told the press.
At Montreal-Trudeau airport, some American airline flights scheduled for Saturday have been cancelled.
Check the arrival schedule at Montreal-Trudeau airport
Read “What to do if computer failure has clipped your wings”
While several American companies (American Airlines, United, Delta, etc.) have resumed their activities, their Mexican counterparts still seemed to be affected by the outage.
“We have been waiting since 3 a.m.,” said Juan Pablo Olvera, stuck at Mexico City’s airport. “Because the system is down, the QR codes were not working,” he said, as long lines and flight delays were reported.
Airports in Guadalajara, in western Mexico, and Monterrey, in the north, asked passengers to arrive several hours early.
CrowdStrike’s stock market plunges
Several hospitals in the Netherlands have also been affected, leading to the closure of an emergency department and the postponement of operations.
Britain’s largest rail operator, Govia Thameslink Railway, has spoken of “potential last-minute cancellations” as companies are unable to access certain driver systems.
“Other key systems, including our real-time customer information platforms, are also affected,” the message continued, urging passengers to check before their journey.
Global stock markets were down, worried by this breakdown which also prevented the London and Milan indices from displaying their rate of change for a good part of the day.
On the New York Stock Exchange, CrowdStrike closed down 11.10% and Microsoft down 0.74%.
CrowdStrike relies heavily on artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning and notably offers a digital protection platform called Falcon.