Global IT outage linked to cybersecurity software Crowdstrike affects businesses around the world

A catastrophic IT outage is causing chaos around the world with banks, airlines, media organisations and government agencies in the dark.

The widespread outage which started at 3pm (EST) is linked to CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity program that touts itself as a “global cybersecurity leader with an advanced cloud-native platform for protecting endpoints, cloud workloads, identities and data”.

The issue comes from a “bluescreen error” which is a result of a Crowdstrike outage, with servers and devices getting stuck in “boot loops”. Computer systems have crashed, with machines continually restarting.

It’s understood the outage was caused as a result of a technical update with reports of widespread problems in New Zealand, Japan, India, the UK and Europe.

In a message to CrowdStrike users, the company said it was “aware of reports of crashes on Windows hosts related to the Falcon Sensor”.

The Falcon sensor is installed on business computers to gather security data.

“Symptoms include hosts experiencing a bugcheck/blue screen error related to the Falcon sensor. Our engineering teams are actively working to resolve this issue and there is no need to open a support ticket,” the statement said.

“Status updates will be posted below as we have more information to share.”

CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz posted on social media platform X the company “is actively working with customers impacted by a defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts”.

“This is not a security incident or cyberattack. The issue has been identified, isolated and a fix has been deployed,” he said.

Banks including Bendigo Bank, ANZ, Commonwealth Bank, Bank of Queensland and more are all down, with hundreds of user reports flooding website Downdetector.

The ABC reported Microsoft became aware of the issue as early as 8am (EST) this morning.

Microsoft 365 posted on X the company was “working on rerouting the impacted traffic to alternate systems to alleviate impact in a more expedient fashion” and it was “observing a positive trend in service availability”.

The company did not respond to a request for comment. It did not explain the cause of the outage further.

Australian Government agencies have also been affected.

A spokesperson said the Australian Government is working closely with the National Cyber Security Coordinator on the outage.

“We understand Triple-0 services are currently not affected by this outage,” they said.

“The information as it stands is this outage relates to a technical issue with a third-party software platform employed by affected companies.

“As the Cyber Security Coordinator has said, there is no information to suggest this is a cyber security incident and they are continuing to engage across key stakeholders.

“The National Emergency Mechanism group will meet shortly, co-chaired by the National Emergency Management Agency.”

There are reports of chaos at retail outlets, with shoppers desperately trying to withdraw cash to bypass electronic payment methods.

A Telstra spokesperson said some of their systems had been disrupted.

“The issue is causing some holdups for some of our customers and we thank you for your patience,” they said.

A spokesperson from NBN Co said the network was functioning normally.

A Virgin Australia spokesperson said the airline was “aware of a large-scale IT outage impacting multiple airlines and other businesses which is having an impact on our operations”.

“We are working to resolve this issue as soon as possible. We appreciate the patience of all travellers as we work through a solution and will provide an update once more information is known.”

Qantas flights have also been impacted.

At Sydney Airport, Virgin Australia told passengers there is a “complete ground stop”, meaning no flights are going in or out of the airport. Other flights out of Sydney Airport have also been grounded.

Jetstar has cancelled 14 flights in Sydney and told passengers if their flight was cancelled not to contact their customer service centre by phone or on the web.

“Flights are currently arriving and departing however there may be some delays throughout the evening,” A Sydney Airports spokesperson told The Australian.“We have activated our contingency plans with our airline partners and deployed additional staff to our terminals to assist passengers.“Anyone travelling today should leave plenty of time to come to the airport and check with their airline regarding the status of their flight.”

Sydney train services in Sydney’s south-west and NSW’s north have resumed after being affected by the outage.

More than dozen flights at Melbourne Airport have also been cancelled, mostly Jetstar flights.

In Perth, flights are continuing but with no online check-in.

Berlin, Barcelona and Edinburgh airports have all released statements via X telling customers their trips will be delayed.

The Federal Aviation Administration or FFA has grounded all flights flown by major US airlines Delta, United and American Airlines in the United States.

Flights in the UK have also been grounded.

At least one rail system is down in the UK with the Southern Rail network reporting it is “unable to access driver diagrams at certain locations”.

Betting systems have also been suspended, with TAB currently offline.

A CBA spokesperson said the bank was “urgently investigating any impacts to our systems and services”.

“We know some customers have been unable to make PayID payments,” they said.

“If you are unable to use PayID, you’re still able to make payments between your accounts or pay someone using their BSB and account number.

“We’re sorry for the inconvenience. Thanks for your patience while we work through the impacts.”

There are also reports point-of-sales systems are being affected, with some people taking to X to report Coles’ self-serve Eftpos machines weren’t working.

Another user took to X to say it was “mayhem at Woolworths” when the outages started. Six stores have been forced to shut their doors.

Photos from supermarkets show the self-serve check-outs with the same blue screen affecting windows computers nationwide, with workers manually checking-out shoppers.

Postage and freight deliveries will likely face delays with Australia Post, Amazon and VISA also among the affected organisations.

It remains unclear how many outlets have been hit by the outage and whether it is being treated as suspicious.

The National Cyber Security Coordinator has posted to X, formerly Twitter, amid the chaos, saying it’s likely a technical issue and not cybersecurity-related.

“I am aware of a large-scale technical outage affecting a number of companies and services across Australia this afternoon,” the coordinator said.

“Our current information is this outage relates to a technical issue with a third-party software platform employed by affected companies.

“There is no information to suggest it is a cyber security incident. We continue to engage across key stakeholders.”

Bunnings chief information officer Gen Elliott said some store registers had been impacted and apologised to customers for the disruption.

“This is due to a third-party vendor issue that’s affecting a number of organisations,” she said. “We’re working with our vendor to address this as a priority and thank customers for their patience.”

KordaMentha forensic partner Brendan Read said a number of the advisory firm’s clients including law firms and corporations had been impacted by the Crowdstrike outage.

Mr Read said there was “no quick fix” and it was unclear when systems would resume operating as normal.

“It’s not the situation you want on a Friday afternoon,” he said.

Mr Read said the outage highlighted the risks and potential exposure of using third-party providers and their platforms.

The Paris Olympics organising committee has said the impact of a global cyber outage on its operations was limited and ticket sales were unaffected ahead of the Games, which begin in a week.