On Friday morning the world woke up to chaos due to a computer problem that paralyzed the communication systems of airports, banks, media and every platform that uses Microsoft devices. The global IT giant reported that it implemented "mitigative measures", which does not mean that solutions have been found, but that emergency systems have been put in place to bypass the problem while a final solution is awaited. The underlying problem may have arisen due to third-party antivirus software produced by Crowdstrike launching an update overnight, which however, for reasons that remain to be verified, went awry, causing the outage function of Microsoft systems.
Experts reported this as the main cause, which is also the basis of the so-called "blue screen of death", the typical blue screen that appears when there is a serious system problem that cannot be bypassed in any way. However, experts are still not sure that Crowdstrike's and Microsoft's problems are directly related, and it cannot be ruled out, even if the possibilities are slim, that these are two related problems, but not directly related. According to British broadcaster Sky News, in a recorded phone message, Crowdstrike says it is aware of problems in Microsoft's Windows operating system related to its Falcon sensor.
Meanwhile, problems follow each other and accumulate. In American hospitals, patients' medical files were blocked and could not be consulted by doctors, while in Germany two hospitals blocked operations for the same reason. The air transport system was in serious trouble, with many airports closed to air traffic. In Europe, those that suffered the most consequences were Berlin and Amsterdam, which are also two of the most important airports for intercontinental trade.
KLM decided to ground all its planes while Delta and American Airlines reported serious problems. Narita Airport in Japan also had disruptions.