Australia’s National Cyber Security Coordinator claims to be aware of a “large-scale technical outage”.
A major IT outage that disrupted companies and institutions in several countries, disrupting government services, banks, supermarkets, telecommunications, media and airlines.
Australia’s National Cyber Security Coordinator said on Friday it was aware of a “large-scale technical outage” that has affected multiple businesses and services across the country.
“Our current information is that this outage is related to a technical issue with a third-party software platform employed by the affected companies,” the agency said in a statement.
“There is no information to suggest this is a cybersecurity incident. We continue to engage with key stakeholders.”
In Australia, photos posted on social media showed blank flight information screens at Sydney airport and inoperative self-service checkouts at supermarket chains Woolworths and Coles.
Airports in the United Kingdom, Germany and Malaysia also reported disruptions to their services.
IT security firm Crowdstrike said in a recorded telephone message that it was aware of reports of flaws in Microsoft’s Windows operating system.
Sydney Airport said flights were arriving and departing but travelers should expect delays.
“We have activated our contingency plans and deployed additional personnel to our terminals,” he said in a post on X.
Melbourne Airport said some airlines’ check-in procedures were affected.
“Passengers flying with these airlines this afternoon are advised to allow a little extra time to check-in. Please check with your airline for flight updates,” he said in a post on X.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Network Ten also confirmed their systems were affected.
#SMASH: Widespread Microsoft outages have thrown IT systems across Australia into crisis this afternoon, with banks, airlines, police and other systems reported to be affected.
(And the humble social news team admins too, evidently. We’re doing our best here. More to come.) pic.twitter.com/IM0LZARu5v
– 10 News First (@10NewsFirst) July 19, 2024
New South Wales State Police said they were aware of the outage and that anyone facing an emergency should call the emergency number 000.
Police are aware of the current system outage.
For emergency situations, call 000.
– NSW Police Force (@nswpolice) July 19, 2024
This story originally appeared on Aljazeera.com read the full story