Microsoft global outage: IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw says reason identified; CERT issues technical advisory

Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Ashwini Vaishnaw, has announced that the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) is collaborating with Microsoft and its partners to tackle a widespread Windows 10 outage. This issue, traced back to a recent update of CrowdStrike’s Falcon sensor, has led to numerous PCs halting at the recovery screen. The problem has disrupted operations at airports, companies, banks, and government offices globally.

CrowdStrike has acknowledged the issue on their support page, identifying the Falcon sensor as the source of the problem. The company has rolled back the problematic update and released fixes to address the crashes. Despite this, some Windows hosts continue to experience the Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) associated with the Falcon sensor.

CERT-In has issued an advisory (CIAD-2024-0035) detailing the issue. The advisory notes that affected Windows hosts are crashing due to the recent update from CrowdStrike.

To resolve this, users are advised to follow these steps:

Boot Windows in Safe Mode or Windows Recovery Environment.

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

Delete the file matching "C-00000291*.sys".

Reboot the system normally.

Vaishnaw confirmed that the National Informatics Centre (NIC) network remains unaffected. Users are also encouraged to check the CrowdStrike portal for the latest updates and further instructions.

This proactive response aims to mitigate the impact of the outage and restore normalcy for the affected users.

As a consequence of the workflow disruption in India, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad has issued an advisory regarding a global IT outage impacting some airlines, reported PTI. This led to the cancellation of 23 flights, including Indigo's routes to Visakhapatnam, Tirupati, Ahmedabad, and Bengaluru. Passengers are advised to contact airlines for updates.

Notable companies affected included McDonald's Corp., United Airlines Holdings Inc., and the LSE Group, all of which faced significant customer service communication issues. These firms were among many corporations, spanning from Japan to India and the US, reporting operational glitches.