Many Microsoft Windows 10 computers worldwide are experiencing widespread glitches, leaving hundreds of thousands of users impacted. Users on social media are sharing photos of their computer screens displaying the classic Blue Screen of Death (BSOD), indicating system failures attributed to the glitch.
The issue has not only affected offices globally but has also disrupted critical services at locations such as airports, where operations have been severely impacted. Social media platforms are flooded with reports of users encountering a Recovery Page with a message stating, “The Windows did not load correctly,” further exacerbating the disruption.
The glitch appears to be linked to an update issued by CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity company based in the US. CrowdStrike has acknowledged the issue in a support note to its customers, citing widespread reports of BSODs on Windows hosts using multiple sensor versions. However, the company has not provided specific details on the cause beyond acknowledging the problem.
In response to the outage, airlines worldwide, including Akasa Air and IndiGo in India, have reported issues with their check-in systems due to the CrowdStrike update. Akasa Air has informed passengers about infrastructure issues impacting their online services, leading to temporary unavailability of booking, check-in, and manage booking services. The airline has resorted to manual check-in and boarding processes at airports to mitigate disruptions.
Ryanair, a European airline, has also issued a statement warning of potential disruptions across its network due to the global third-party system outage. The airline attributed the inconvenience to a “3rd party IT issue” affecting all airlines operating within its network.
Guardian Australia reported early on the glitch’s impact, noting that businesses across various sectors such as banks, airlines, telecommunications, TV and radio broadcasters, and supermarkets have been taken offline due to BSOD errors on Windows workstations globally.
Cybersecurity experts have pointed to CrowdStrike’s Falcon suite of software, used for managing cybersecurity defense in computers, as the likely cause of the issue. Reports suggest that Windows 10 computers running Falcon agents are primarily affected, causing a boot loop and BSOD on every endpoint where the software is deployed.
While Microsoft has yet to comment on the matter, efforts are underway globally to resolve the widespread disruptions caused by the Windows glitch linked to the CrowdStrike update.
