International: Microsoft Systems Face BSOD Errors Worldwide, Several Sectors Affected

New Delhi:  On Friday, a software update on one of the Microsoft Services triggered a massive outage of computers worldwide, showing the BSOD or Blue Screen Of Death screens and rendering these computer systems temporarily unusable. 

Microsoft is one of the most widely recognised tech brands in the world. Its Windows 10 operating system is one of the most widely used operating systems in the current day. Also, Microsoft Azure services are the backbone of thousands of web-related services in the current day. And CrowdStrike services are part of these popular platforms. On Friday, a technical error from the side of CrowdStrike triggered millions of computer systems running Windows services to show the blue error screen, which is known in tech circles as the Blue Screen of Death. Users of systems facing this problem cannot operate these computers until the problem is resolved, and this is exactly what happened across the world on Friday. 

It must be noted that several airline systems are dependent on Windows services for their regular and synchronised operations for some of their services. So the airline sector worldwide was one the worst hit services because of this outage. Several airline companies were forced to delay their flights and some were even forced to ground flights because of the problems faced. Some companies operated with hand-written boarding passes since the automatic boarding pass-generating systems failed. Information display boards across multiple airports remained unusable, causing delays and confusion among passengers. Several airports issued alerts regarding possible delays. The Federal Aviation Administration of the US also issued an alert.

Several key airports across America and Europe also faced the outage, leading to delays and cancellations in international flights. Multiple stock exchanges also faced problems. Although the Indian NSE announced that they had not been affected, other exchanges in different countries including the London Stock Exchange had a different story to tell. Alongside transportation, operations of the medical and banking sectors have also been affected in different parts of the world.

"MEITY is in touch with Microsoft and its associates regarding the global outage. The reason for this outage has been identified and updates have been released to resolve the issue. CERT is issuing a technical advisory. NIC network is not affected," says Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.

Meanwhile, Microsoft had earlier issued a short statement on social media platform X saying that the problem will be resolved soon. 

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