Microsoft outage: What is CrowdStrike and why users are getting Windows blue screens (2024)

Microsoft outage: What is CrowdStrike and why users are getting Windows blue screens (1)

Editor's note: Check out our oft-updated live blog for all new developments about the Microsoft/CrowdStrike outage

Windows PCs all around the world are crashing, and it's getting uglier fast.

It's all due to an issue with CrowdStrike's Falcon Sensor software, and it's spreading in unpredictable ways. But what is CrowdStrike? What's a "blue screen of death"? And how worried should Windows PC owners be? Here's what you need to know.

What is CrowdStrike, and what is Falcon Sensor?

CrowdStrike is a cybersecurity company, and Falcon Sensor is software designed to prevent computer systems from cyber attacks. Earlier this morning, on July 19, the company warned its users that Windows systems are "experiencing a bugcheck/blue screen error related to the Falcon Sensor," and said that its engineering teams are "actively working to resolve this issue."

Apparently, an update to the Falcon software is what caused the issue; the company rolled back the update but numerous machines are still affected.

Both Microsoft and CrowdStrike have now acknowledged the issue, which is only present on Windows machines, while Mac and Linux computers aren't affected.

LIVE UPDATES: Microsoft outage linked to CrowdStrike knocks users offline

Tweet may have been deleted

"CrowdStrike is actively working with customers impacted by a defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts. Mac and Linux hosts are not impacted. This is not a security incident or 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. We further recommend organizations ensure they’re communicating with CrowdStrike representatives through official channels. Our team is fully mobilized to ensure the security and stability of CrowdStrike customers," George Kurtz, CrowdStrike's President and CEO, wrote on X.

What's a blue screen of death?

If you've been so fortunate to never see a blue screen of death, it is a type of critical error on Windows PCs which essentially halts whatever the computer's been doing and displays an error report on a blue screen.

What is CrowdStrike's relationship with Microsoft?

CrowdStrike doesn't really have a direct relationship with Microsoft. It is, however, a hugely popular cybersecurity company, especially for large businesses and institutions, due to its reputation of being able to stop cyberattacks in their tracks, and that means it runs on a lot of Windows machines. It is also available for Mac and Linux computers, though the current issue is only related to Windows computers.

A report from IDC dated February 2023 placed CrowdStrike at the number one spot when it comes to endpoint security, with a 17.7% market share. Microsoft's own endpoint security solutions are a close second with a 16.4% market share.

Featured Video For You

What is CrowdStrike and why users are getting Windows blue screens

How widespread is this issue?

CrowdStrike's software is popular and widely used, and as a result, there are numerous outages across platforms including Microsoft 365, Azure, Instagram, eBay, Visa, and AT&T. A number of banks, such as Chase, Wells Fargo, TD Bank, and US Bank appeared to be having issues as well. Downdetector is a good place to check which services are having issues. (Full disclosure: Downdetector is owned by Mashable's parent company, ZiffDavis.)

Mashable Light Speed

Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories?

Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter.

By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

Thanks for signing up!

The problems are widespread enough to have caused some airlines, including Delta, American, RyanAir, and United Airlines, being grounded due to communications issues, apparently related to the outage.

Sky News was unable to broadcast live TV early on Friday, also apparently due to this problem.

Tweet may have been deleted

Even electronic payment systems in some supermarkets are down, rendering people unable to pay for groceries.

What should I do?

CrowdStrike software is typically maintained by the company's system administrator. For most users experiencing problems, this means that they should probably report the issue to their system admin and wait for resolution.

In a notice to users, CrowdStrike said that there is no need to open a support ticket with CrowdStrike as the company's engineers are aware of the issue and are actively working on it.

Related Stories

  • Microsoft outage updates: Crowdstrike issue still wreaking havoc despite fix
  • Microsoft has let its AI-powered Designer app out of preview mode
  • Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 review: 23 hours of battery life? MacBooks are in trouble
  • Microsoft made an AI voice so real, it's too dangerous to release
  • 5 Copilot AI features that are on by default in Microsoft products

For support from CrowdStrike, users can go to the company's Support Portal over at supportportal.crowdstrike.com/s.

There's also an active discussion on Reddit, where system admins are sharing their experiences while trying to resolve the issue.

If you're eager to try to fix the issue yourself, here's a workaround:

  1. "Boot Windows into Safe Mode or the Windows Recovery Environment

  2. "Navigate to the C:\Windows\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike directory

  3. "Locate the file matching 'C-0000029*.sys', and delete it.

  4. "Boot the host normally."

How long will the Microsoft outage last?

While the issue has been "identified, isolated, and a fix has been deployed," per CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz, actually fixing it is not always trivial. This is not a simple update which can easily be deployed to all systems over-the-air, as many of the affected systems crash right after booting up, meaning they're in an endless boot loop. This, in turn, means that the fix must be applied manually (see instructions above) to each affected system, and in large companies, this can take many hours.

In an interview with TODAY, Kurtz admitted the issues could persist for a while longer.

"It could be some time for some systems that just automatically won’t recover," he said.

Microsoft's CEO Satya Nadella acknowledged the issue around midday Friday but did not provide a timeline for when people could expect the issues to be resolved.

"Yesterday, CrowdStrike released an update that began impacting IT systems globally," Nadella wrote on X. "We are aware of this issue and are working closely with CrowdStrike and across the industry to provide customers technical guidance and support to safely bring their systems back online."

Developing...

TopicsCybersecurity

Microsoft outage: What is CrowdStrike and why users are getting Windows blue screens (2)

Tim Marcin

Tim Marcin is a culture reporter at Mashable, where he writes about food, fitness, weird stuff on the internet, and, well, just about anything else. You can find him posting endlessly about Buffalo wings on Twitter at @timmarcin.

Microsoft outage: What is CrowdStrike and why users are getting Windows blue screens (3)

Stan Schroeder

Senior Editor

Stan is a Senior Editor at Mashable, where he has worked since 2007. He's got more battery-powered gadgets and band t-shirts than you. He writes about the next groundbreaking thing. Typically, this is a phone, a coin, or a car. His ultimate goal is to know something about everything.

Recommended For You

Microsoft says CrowdStrike outage affected many more devices than reported

8.5 million devices were confirmed affected by the CrowdStrike outage, but Microsoft says that's only a subset.

By Matt Binder

CrowdStrike, Microsoft break silence on the Windows outage disrupting the world

The CrowdStrike CEO has apologized.

By Stan Schroeder

CrowdStrike announces Microsoft outage workaround. How to deal with the Blue Screen of Death.

Did you get a Blue Screen of Death in the global outage? Try this.

By Amanda Yeo

Microsoft releases easier CrowdStrike fix

Computers and services around the world are still impacted by the faulty CrowdStrike update.

By Matt Binder

Microsoft outage impacting flights globally. See the latest.

Very IRL consequences for the CrowdStrike outage.

By Shannon Connellan

Trending on Mashable

NYT Connections today: See hints and answers for August 4

Everything you need to solve 'Connections' #420.

By Mashable Team

A violent event occurred on Alaska's fat bear livestream

"She continued to fight back."

By Mark Kaufman

Wordle today: Here's the answer hints for August 4

Here are some tips and tricks to help you find the answer to "Wordle" #1142.

By Mashable Team

Comet caught strangely zigzagging its way through space

Here's the reason this comet's tail looks kinky.

By Elisha Sauers

Spacecraft travels to metal object orbiting Earth, snaps stunning views

"We're watching you from every angle."

By Mark Kaufman

The biggest stories of the day delivered to your inbox.

This newsletter may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. Subscribing to a newsletter indicates your consent to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe from the newsletters at any time.

Thanks for signing up. See you at your inbox!

Microsoft outage: What is CrowdStrike and why users are getting Windows blue screens (2024)

FAQs

Microsoft outage: What is CrowdStrike and why users are getting Windows blue screens? ›

CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity firm whose software protects small businesses and large companies from cyberattacks and other online threats, said it caused the outage when it sent out a software update containing a glitch, crashing Windows computers running the company's software.

What causes CrowdStrike on the blue screen? ›

The software that caused this massive BSOD issue was CrowdStrike's Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) driver which is part of the platform called as CrowdStrike Falcon Sensor.

What caused the CrowdStrike outage? ›

CrowdStrike has released its root cause analysis of the faulty software update that led to a global outage in July. It found one undetected sensor written into an update for its Falcon software caused the system crash.

Did CrowdStrike cause Microsoft outage? ›

Synopsis. Microsoft experienced a global outage on Thursday due to an issue with CrowdStrike's Falcon Sensor software, causing widespread disruptions and triggering the 'Blue Screen of Death' on Windows PCs.

What is the CrowdStrike issue? ›

What might be considered the largest IT outage in history was triggered by a botched software update from security vendor CrowdStrike, affecting millions of Windows systems around the world. Insurers estimate the outage will cost U.S. Fortune 500 companies $5.4 billion.

Why am I getting Windows blue screen? ›

The blue screen of death is usually caused by improperly installed, damaged, or aging hardware, or by buggy or incompatible software. Driver updates for your graphics card or other hardware components can also cause a blue screen of death if they fail to integrate properly with the rest of your system.

How do I get rid of CrowdStrike? ›

Uninstall from Control Panel
  1. Open the Windows Control Panel.
  2. Click Uninstall a Program.
  3. Choose CrowdStrike Windows Sensor and uninstall it.

Why is CrowdStrike down so much? ›

On July 19, U.S. investors awoke to reports of what some experts were calling the largest IT outage ever. While investors were sleeping, CrowdStrike released a defective update to its software that caused Microsoft-based IT systems to go down.

What bug was in CrowdStrike? ›

A glitch meant the system did not identify “problematic content data” in a file, according to CrowdStrike, meaning that computers running Microsoft's Windows operating system crashed and showed the now-infamous 'Blue Screen of Death'. CrowdStrike's Falcon Sensor has been cited as the cause.

How did the CrowdStrike incident happen? ›

The sensor expected 20 input fields, but the update provided 21 input fields. “In this instance, the mismatch resulted in an out-of-bounds memory read, causing a system crash,” CrowdStrike wrote.

Is there any Microsoft outage today? ›

Title}} Everything is up and running.

What was the cause of the Microsoft outage? ›

What we know about the global Microsoft outage. A massive outage was caused by what was supposed to be a routine update from the cybersecurity company CrowdStrike. A routine software update caused cascading chaos Friday that has engulfed global businesses from airports and banks to retail and law enforcement.

What is CrowdStrike disruption? ›

A global technology outage caused by a faulty software update grounded flights, knocked media outlets offline, and disrupted hospitals, small businesses and government offices on Friday, highlighting the fragility of a digitized world dependent on just a handful of providers.

Is CrowdStrike a virus? ›

CrowdStrike is a web/cloud based anti-virus which uses very little storage space on your machine. CrowdStrike installs a lightweight sensor on your machine that is less than 5MB and is completely invisible to the end user.

Is CrowdStrike owned by Microsoft? ›

CrowdStrike was founded in 2012 by CEO George Kurtz, formerly of McAfee. It's a publicly traded company owned by investors.

Does the US government use CrowdStrike? ›

Crowdstrike is in wide use across federal agencies and it is a key vendor on the governmentwide Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation cybersecurity support services contract.

Is CrowdStrike Falcon sensor a virus? ›

CrowdStrike Falcon is an antivirus solution that actively detects and prevents malicious files and behaviour.

What is the root cause of blue screen? ›

A blue screen can manifest due to various system errors such as RAM corruption, virus infection, driver incompatibility issues and other software errors. In many cases, the root cause behind the blue screen error can be attributed to hardware failure, such as problematic memory modules or defective video cards.

What is the most likely cause of blue screen? ›

Usually, they're related to driver software or hardware communication issues. Other common causes of the BSOD include: Fault device drivers. Graphic card issues.

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Rev. Leonie Wyman

Last Updated:

Views: 5663

Rating: 4.9 / 5 (59 voted)

Reviews: 90% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Rev. Leonie Wyman

Birthday: 1993-07-01

Address: Suite 763 6272 Lang Bypass, New Xochitlport, VT 72704-3308

Phone: +22014484519944

Job: Banking Officer

Hobby: Sailing, Gaming, Basketball, Calligraphy, Mycology, Astronomy, Juggling

Introduction: My name is Rev. Leonie Wyman, I am a colorful, tasty, splendid, fair, witty, gorgeous, splendid person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.