NASSAU, BAHAMAS- A software update impacting computer systems worldwide has reportedly caused a global disruption that has grounded flights, caused some broadcasters to go off-air, and disrupted essential services ranging from banking to healthcare.
The update in question was related to a product from CrowdStrike, a global cybersecurity firm, which appeared to have triggered the issue affecting users of Microsoft’s Windows Operating System (MSFT.O).
By 6 a.m. Eastern Time on Friday, 512 flights within the US had already been canceled due to the outage affecting Windows-operated computers. This number surged to 1,180 cancellations by 8:30 a.m. according to FlightAware data, with expectations of further disruptions continuing throughout the morning.
CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz addressed the situation on social media, stating that the issue stemmed from a defect in a single content update for Windows hosts and reassured the public that it was not a security breach or cyberattack. He also mentioned that a fix was actively being deployed to address the problem.
Officials from the National Airports Department (NAD) confirmed issues with U.S. border control earlier in the morning, which were promptly rectified by their operations team. At the time of the update, no issues had been reported with flights at LPIA, although the situation was being monitored closely due to the potential for issues to arise later in the day.
