Experiencing the Blue Screen of Death on your Windows computer? You’re not alone. Windows systems worldwide are crashing due to an issue with CrowdStrike’s Falcon Sensor.
CrowdStrike, a leading cybersecurity firm, acknowledged the problem. “CrowdStrike is aware of reports of crashes on Windows hosts related to the Falcon Sensor,” the company announced at 1:30 a.m. ET on Friday. The Falcon Sensor, software designed to protect against cyber threats, is identified as the cause of these crashes.
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Worldwide Disruptions
CrowdStrike’s alert further explained, “Symptoms include experiencing a bugcheck\blue screen error related to the Falcon Sensor. Our Engineering teams are actively working to resolve this issue, and there is no need to open a support ticket.”
The impact of this issue is extensive. As Windows is a globally prevalent operating system and CrowdStrike a widely used cybersecurity solution, the resulting outages have affected numerous companies and services. Reports of disruptions have come from countries including Australia, New Zealand, India, Japan, and the UK. In the U.S., outage monitor DownDetector shows a surge in issues across various platforms and businesses like Amazon Web Services, Instagram, eBay, Visa, and ADT.
Additionally, U.S. airlines such as American, Delta, and United Airlines have faced groundings due to communications problems seemingly linked to this issue. Supermarkets, banks, telecommunications companies, and TV broadcasters are also affected.
We reached out to CrowdStrike, and a company representative provided CyberGuy with this statement,
Today was not a security or cyber incident. Our customers remain fully protected. We understand the gravity of the situation and are deeply sorry for the inconvenience and disruption. We are working with all impacted customers to ensure that systems are back up and they can deliver the services their customers are counting on. As noted earlier, the issue has been identified and a fix has been deployed. There was an issue with a Falcon content update for Windows Hosts.
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CrowdStrike’s action plan
By 2:30 a.m. ET, CrowdStrike announced that they had identified and rolled back the problematic update. They also provided a workaround for users experiencing the Blue Screen of Death:
- Start Windows in Safe Mode or the Windows Recovery Environment.
- Go to the directory
C:\Windows\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike. - Find and delete the file named ‘C-0000029*.sys’.
- Reboot the computer normally.
This solution, while straightforward, will require significant effort to implement across affected systems globally.
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CrowdStrike restores 97% of affected Windows sensors
According to CrowdStrike, as of July 25, over 97% of Windows sensors are back online. Despite this significant progress, the company says work is not yet complete, and there is a continued commitment to restoring every impacted system.
For customers still affected, there is an assurance by the company that full recovery remains the priority, with a promise of a focused, effective, and urgent response. Recovery efforts have been enhanced by developing automatic recovery techniques and mobilizing all available resources.
A preliminary incident report (PIR) has been published detailing the incident’s causes and the measures being taken to prevent future occurrences. CrowdStrike says it remains committed to its mission of stopping breaches, with a renewed focus on customer controls and resilience.
Enhancing your system’s security
This incident underscores the need for robust security measures to protect your computer from similar disruptions. Here are some key practices and additional steps to safeguard your system:
1) Regularly backup your data – Regularly backing up your data is essential. This practice ensures that you can recover your important files in case of a system failure or cyber attack. Here are some tips for effective backups.
2) Have strong antivirus software & keep it up to date: The best way to protect yourself from clicking malicious links that install malware that may get access to your private information is to have antivirus protection installed on all your devices. This can also alert you of any phishing emails or ransomware scams.
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3) Perform regular system scans: Schedule regular scans to detect and fix issues before they escalate.
4) Install trusted software only: Download software from reputable sources to avoid introducing malware to your system.
5) Regularly update your operating system: Ensure that your OS is updated with the latest security patches and updates to protect against vulnerabilities.
6) Use strong, unique passwords: Create strong, unique passwords for all your accounts. Consider using a password manager to keep track of them.
7) Use two-factor authentication (2FA): Enable 2FA for an additional layer of security on your accounts, making it harder for unauthorized users to gain access.
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Kurts’ takeaways
The extensive impact of the CrowdStrike issue underscores the interconnected nature of today’s technology and the potential for widespread disruptions. While CrowdStrike has provided a solution, the global scale of the problem means resolution will take time. Implementing the provided workaround should help restore functionality. Additionally, maintaining robust antivirus protection can safeguard your systems against similar issues in the future. Stay tuned for further updates from CrowdStrike.
What role do you think cybersecurity plays in preventing tech disruptions like the one caused by CrowdStrike? How can companies better prepare for such incidents? Let us know in the comments below.
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