There’s been a global computer outage in the morning of July 19. It looks like the problem started when Windows users ran an update for their computers. After the computer updates, it shows a blue screen with an error message.
The problem appears to be a flaw in software developed by cybersecurity company CrowdStrike that, once installed, runs at the core of the operating system.
It’s not just personal computers that are affected. Large organisations are also experiencing issues.
Airports around the world, including the US, UK, Japan and the Netherlands, have grounded some of their planes until further notice, causing flight delays and forcing some processes to be done manually, long queues are already forming at airports. The risks associated with the outage are not yet known.
Global services such as banks, telephone operators and hospitals are affected as well, with many warning of disruptions in their services on social media.
Update July 19, 12PM
The CEO of CrowdStrike, George Kurtz, informed via X that the issue was caused by a “single content update” for Windows hosts. Mac and Linux were not affected. He also mentioned that this is not a security incident or cyber attack, and refers customers to CrowdStrike’s official support channels for the latest updates.
What should I do if I’m affected?
The Dutch National CyberSecurity Centre (NCSC) has released a workaround if you’re stuck on the Blue Screen of Death, here’s what you need to do:
- Boot your computer in recovery mode, this is usually done by pressing the key F11 at boot time, but this may vary per device
- Open File Explorer and go to:
C:\Windows\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike - Locate the file
C-00000291-00000000-00000032.sysand rename it toC-00000291-00000000-00000032.renamed - Boot the host normally.
If you’re affected by this issue, we strongly recommend that you don’t follow any unofficial solution on the Internet, as attackers often take advantage of this moment of uncertainty.
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