Planes Grounded, Media And Banks Disrupted Due To Global IT Glitch

Operations of major banks, media outlets, hospitals and airlines were affected worldwide due to a widespread IT failure.

Tens of thousands of customers and air and rail passengers in many countries struggled due to service providers’ inability to offer services.

American Airlines and the Swiss cyber security office cited a “technical issue” with cybersecurity company Crowdstrike, which protects a number of global institutions and their hardware from cyber threats.

Microsoft, which is one among its clients, put the blame on third-party software. The IT giant said it was looking into an issue preventing users from accessing its apps and services.

The systems are not entirely down so that organizations are able to operate partially, reports say.

“We’re aware of an issue affecting Windows devices due to an update from a third-party software platform. We anticipate a resolution is forthcoming,” its spokesperson was quoted as saying.

“A third party software outage is impacting computer systems worldwide, including at United. While we work to restore those systems, we are holding all aircraft at their departure airports. Flights already airborne are continuing to their destinations,” United Airlines said in a statement.

The Federal Aviation Administration announced that several major US carriers, including Delta, United and American Airlines, have grounded their flights.

Business News