A single software update potentially responsible for widespread IT outage affecting banks, airports, and supermarkets worldwide

Computer systems in Australia and around the world experienced a major IT outage this afternoon due to a faulty update from CrowdStrike, a global security software provider. The affected software is the CrowdStrike Falcon platform, which is used by businesses and organizations for security monitoring on desktop computers and notebooks. This outage has impacted major organizations such as Commonwealth Bank, Telstra, and the ABC, causing their websites to go offline. Customers are unable to use EFTPOS for payments, and services from major banks, media organizations, and airlines have been suspended. The issue seems to have been caused by a software update that caused Windows computers to crash and display the “blue screen of death.” CrowdStrike has stated that they have stopped the issue from spreading further, but fixing affected computers may be time-consuming. Home computers are not expected to be affected by this incident. The Australian Cyber Security Centre and the National Emergency Mechanism group will provide more information on the outage.