CrowdStrike software update affected 8.5 million Windows devices during outage, Microsoft says

In a sweeping disruption, a software update from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike led to widespread issues affecting nearly 8.5 million Microsoft devices, Microsoft revealed in a blog post on Saturday.

“We currently estimate that CrowdStrike’s update affected 8.5 million Windows devices, or less than one percent of all Windows machines,” Microsoft stated in the blog post.

On July 18, CrowdStrike issued a software update causing widespread disruptions to IT systems worldwide that grounded flights, interrupted broadcasting, and left customers without access to essential services such as healthcare and banking.

“While the percentage was small, the broad economic and societal impacts reflect the use of CrowdStrike by enterprises that run many critical services,” Microsoft explained.

Delta Cancels Another 600 Flights Amid Cyber Outage Aftermath

The ripple effects of the outage continue to disrupt numerous sectors. The air travel industry, in particular, struggled on Saturday, grappling with thousands of flight cancellations and extensive delays.

Delta Air Lines, one of the most affected carriers, reported over 600 flight cancellations by 10 a.m. EDT on Saturday as it worked to recover from the previous week’s cyber outage. Despite recovery efforts by other airlines, Delta anticipated further cancellations.

As of 7:00 a.m. EST, FlightAware data indicated that about 16% of Delta’s flights had been canceled, equating to roughly 1,100 flights to or from the United States, Reuters reported.

Collaborative Efforts to Mitigate the Outage’s Impact

Microsoft noted that CrowdStrike has been instrumental in developing a solution to expedite the restoration of Microsoft’s Azure infrastructure. Additionally, Microsoft is collaborating with Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud Platform, sharing insights on the outage’s effects across the tech industry.

CrowdStrike’s CEO addressed the incident during an interview on the Today Show, attributing the global cyber outage to “a single content update.” But experts said an error in a single line of C++ code by Crowstrike triggered the global tech meltdown.

As the fallout from the update continues to unfold, the tech world is left to assess the vulnerabilities exposed by this widespread disruption and the steps necessary to prevent such incidents in the future.