In what will go down as the most spectacular IT failure the world has ever seen, a botched software update from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike Holdings crashed countless Microsoft Windows computer systems around the world on Friday.
Microsoft and CrowdStrike have rolled out fixes, and systems are gradually being restored. But for several hours, bankers in Hong Kong, doctors in the U.K. and emergency responders in New Hampshire found themselves locked out of programs critical to keeping their operations afloat. Some businesses are facing the prospect of continued disruptions as the restoration process is, in some cases, requiring tech workers to manually reboot systems and remove faulty files.
"This is unprecedented,” said Alan Woodward, professor of cybersecurity at Surrey University. "The economic impact is going to be huge.”