A major technical incident has occurred globally, causing many banks to cease operations and creating chaos from airports to supermarkets!

On the afternoon of July 19th, the Daily Telegraph reported a global power outage due to an internet system crash. Initial reports indicate that this incident has caused widespread power outages in many countries including Australia, New Zealand, Japan, India, and is rapidly spreading worldwide. The internet crash and power outages are affecting millions of people.

The suspected cause of this incident is a “process error” from the cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike (a major player in the cybersecurity market). Mr. MacGibbon, Chief Strategy Officer at CyberCX, stated that the company seems to have released some malware capable of “damaging” computers globally.

Shortly after this error appeared, it completely paralyzed the city of Sydney due to the power outage.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese later spoke about the situation and assured that there was no impact on critical infrastructure or emergency services like Triple-0. Cybersecurity experts are investigating the cause, considering both a process error at Crowdstrike and the possibility of a cyber attack.

Currently updating globally: The blue screen incident has caused thousands of flights to be canceled, numerous hospitals and companies are paralyzed, and governments around the world are holding emergency meetings. Not only airports but supermarkets and stores are also facing issues as the incident unfolds. Employees are holding signs asking shoppers to wait longer than usual for payments.

The technical issue has also impacted operations at Sydney Airport, leading to flight delays. Airlines and terminal services have activated contingency plans and deployed additional staff to assist passengers. Passengers are advised to check their flight status and arrive at the airport early.

Many supermarkets have had to close because their payment systems are down, making daily shopping difficult. Although Sydney Trains’ subway services are unaffected, some other routes are impacted.

Many people reported being unaware of the global power outage and were shocked upon arriving at the airport. Ms. Francesca said they were scheduled to fly back to Gold Coast at 6 PM but are unsure about the situation: “We just hope we can fly even if we have to wait, and they don’t cancel the flight.”

Others, like Mrs. Maysa Chami, have been waiting for three hours at Sydney Airport.

Finally, Crowdstrike fixed the error by releasing a new update to replace the faulty one. Users are advised to update and restart their systems for the new patch to take effect. The Australian government and national emergency agencies are closely monitoring the situation to ensure essential services are not disrupted.

However, as of now, this incident continues to cause severe disruption:

U.S. air traffic control has requested ALL planes to land.
Airports in the UK, Germany, and Spain are affected.
UK hospitals have temporarily halted bookings due to IT issues.
Trains in many European countries have stopped at the nearest station.
Water companies in the UK and Germany are experiencing issues, with potential water outages.
Power companies in the UK and France report problems.

This incident has quickly escalated into a global crisis. The London Stock Exchange has delayed its opening. Sky News in the UK and ABC in Australia cannot broadcast live.

Australian banks, including NAB, Suncorp, and Bendigo, reported being affected. Meanwhile, Jetstar flights were delayed on Friday afternoon (July 19th) due to the “blue screen” issue.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese issued a statement: “I understand Australians are concerned about the ongoing technical issues globally affecting various services. The national coordination mechanism has been activated and is currently meeting.”

Cirium, an aviation analytics company, shared preliminary data with CNN about the impact of the incident on global aviation:

Globally, around 110,000 commercial flights are scheduled. As of 6 AM U.S. time, 1,390 flights have been canceled worldwide, and this number is rising.
In the U.S., over 27,000 flights are scheduled to carry over 3.7 million passengers, including international departures. As of 6 AM U.S. time, 512 flights departing from the U.S. have been canceled.
In Germany, 4,386 flights are scheduled to carry up to 791,000 passengers. So far, 92 flights have been canceled.
In France, 3,630 flights are scheduled to carry up to 666,000 passengers. So far, 28 flights have been canceled.
In India, 3,652 flights are scheduled to depart. So far, around 56 flights have been canceled.
In Canada, 3,549 flights are scheduled to depart, carrying up to 444,000 passengers. So far, 21 flights have been canceled.

People are stuck at Sydney airport (Australia)

The latest images from Changi Airport (Singapore) are similar

Kuala Lumpur International Airport (Malaysia)

NOTE: Only computers running the Windows 10 operating system and installed with CrowdStrike’s Falcon Sensor software are experiencing Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) errors and are unable to reboot to normal operation. CrowdStrike, the developer, has issued a statement confirming the risk and is working on restoring the Falcon Sensor software to prevent further impact on users’ devices.

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The blue screen incident caused thousands of flights to be canceled, a series of hospitals and companies were paralyzed, and many governments held emergency meetings.