Widespread Microsoft Outage Disrupts Global Services
WELLINGTON: A significant Microsoft outage disrupted flights, banks, media outlets, and companies worldwide on Friday. Despite Microsoft’s efforts to gradually resolve the issue affecting access to Microsoft 365 apps and services, the disruptions persisted for hours.
DownDetector, a website that tracks user-reported internet outages, noted increasing outages at Visa, ADT Security, Amazon, and airlines such as American Airlines and Delta. In Australia, news outlets reported that airlines, telecommunications providers, banks, and media broadcasters lost access to computer systems. Some banks in New Zealand also reported being offline.
Microsoft 365 announced on X that the company was “working on rerouting the impacted traffic to alternate systems to alleviate impact in a more expedient fashion” and observed a “positive trend in service availability.” However, the company did not respond to requests for comment or provide further details on the outage’s cause.
Major disruptions were reported by airlines and airports. In the U.S., the FAA confirmed that United, American, Delta, and Allegiant airlines had all been grounded. In the UK, airlines, railways, and television stations faced disruptions. Affected entities included Ryanair, TransPennine Express, Govia Thameslink Railway, and Sky News.
Ryanair advised passengers to arrive at the airport at least three hours before departure due to the global IT outage. Australian airports experienced widespread problems, with lines growing and passengers stranded as online check-in services and self-service booths were disabled. In Melbourne, passengers queued for over an hour to check in.
Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport reported a “major impact on flights” due to the outage, coinciding with one of the busiest travel days of the year. Berlin Airport in Germany announced delays in check-in due to a technical fault, suspending flights until 10 a.m. (0800 GMT). At Rome’s Leonardo da Vinci airport, some US-bound flights faced delays, while others were unaffected.
In Australia, outages affected banks NAB, Commonwealth, and Bendigo, as well as airlines Virgin Australia and Qantas. Internet and phone providers such as Telstra also experienced disruptions. News outlets including ABC and Sky News were unable to broadcast on TV and radio channels, reporting sudden shutdowns of Windows-based computers. Some news anchors broadcast live online from dark offices, with computers showing “blue screens of death.” Shoppers faced payment system outages at some supermarkets and stores.
New Zealand banks ASB and Kiwibank also reported service disruptions. An X user posted a screenshot of an alert from Crowdstrike, indicating “reports of crashes on Windows hosts” related to its Falcon Sensor platform. The alert, posted on a password-protected Crowdstrike site, could not be verified. Crowdstrike did not respond to a request for comment.
