Editor’s Note: This story has been updated with a statement from CrowdStrike.
A recent update to a service by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. CRWD, has been causing Microsoft Corp.’s MSFT Windows PCs to crash, displaying the Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) and rendering them unable to reboot.
This comes at a time when Microsoft’s cloud services are also witnessing a widespread outage affecting banks, airlines, and broadcasters worldwide.
What Happened: The issue has been reported by several Windows users, with the cause being identified as a file named “csagent.sys,” which is disrupting critical services. CrowdStrike has acknowledged the problem and is working on a solution, The Register reported on Friday.
"We’re seeing BSOD Org wide that are being caused by csagent.sys, and it’s taking down critical services. I’ll open a ticket, but this is a big deal," wrote a user on X.
The “blue screen of death” issue refers to a screen showing a critical error wherein the Windows operating system fails to operate safely due to a system crash. This could be due to hardware or software issues.
Despite the acknowledgment in an apparent screenshot, the advisory issued by CrowdStrike is only accessible to its customers, leaving others in the dark about the situation. The Falcon Sensor, which is designed to protect systems from cyber threats, is currently being identified as the threat itself.
Meanwhile, in Australia, a widespread cyber outage affecting media, banks, and telecom companies has been linked to a technical issue at CrowdStrike, as per a statement from the office of Australia’s National Cyber Security Coordinator Michelle McGuinness.
He said in a post on X, “I am aware of a large-scale technical outage affecting a number of companies and services across Australia this afternoon."
Although the statement did not explicitly name CrowdStrike as the source of the issue, the Downdetector website showed outages at multiple banks and telecom companies.
CrowdStrike president and CEO, George Kurtz denied that this is due to a security incident or a cyberattack.
“The issue has been identified, isolated and a fix has been deployed. We refer customers to the support portal for the latest updates and will continue to provide complete and continuous updates on our website.”
Microsoft did not immediately respond to Benzinga's request for comment.
Why It Matters: The faulty update from CrowdStrike has had a significant impact, with thousands of Windows machines experiencing the BSOD issue. This has led to a global outage, affecting various industries, including banks, airlines, and broadcasters.
A recent Microsoft cloud service disruption in the Central U.S. region significantly impacted the operations of several airlines, including Frontier Group Holdings Inc., Allegiant Travel Company, and Sun Country Airlines.
This incident, combined with the CrowdStrike update issue, highlights the potential vulnerabilities in the technology infrastructure that underpins critical industries.
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Photo courtesy: Wikimedia
This story was generated using Benzinga Neuro and edited by Kaustubh Bagalkote
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