Widespread technology outage disrupts flights, banks, media outlets and companies around the world

FRANKFURT, GERMANY (AP) — A global technology outage grounded flights, knocked banks offline and media outlets off air on Friday after a faulty software update disrupted companies and services around the world and highlighted their dependence on just a handful of providers.

The trouble with the update issued by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike and affecting computers running Microsoft Windows was not a security incident or cyberattack, according to CrowdStrike, which said a fix was on the way.

But hours later, the disruptions continued — and escalated.

Long lines formed at airports in the U.S., Europe and Asia as airlines lost access to check-in and booking services at a time when many travelers are heading away on summer vacations. Hospitals and doctor’s offices had problems with their appointment systems, and cancelled surgeries.

Microsoft posted on social media platform X that the company was “working on rerouting the impacted traffic to alternate systems to alleviate impact” and that they were “observing a positive trend in service availability.”

The company did not respond to a request for comment.

CrowdStrike said in an emailed statement that it “is actively working with customers impacted by a defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts.”

It said: “This is not a security incident or cyberattack. The issue has been identified, isolated and a fix has been deployed.”

The Austin, Texas-based company’s Nasdaq-traded shares were down nearly 15% in premarket trading early Friday.

A recording playing on its customer service line said, “CrowdStrike is aware of the reports of crashes on Microsoft ports related to the Falcon sensor,” referring to one of its products used to block online attacks.

Airlines and railways in the U.K. were also affected, with longer than usual waiting times.

In Germany, Berlin-Brandenburg Airport halted flights for several hours due to difficulties in checking in passengers, while landings at Zurich airport were suspended and flights in Hungary, Italy and Turkey disrupted.

The Dutch carrier KLM said it had been “forced to suspend most” of its operations.

Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport warned that the outage was having a “major impact on flights” to and from the busy European hub. The chaotic morning coincided with one of the busiest days of the year for Schiphol.

Widespread problems were reported at Australian airports, where lines grew and some passengers were stranded as online check-in services and self-service booths were disabled — although flights were still operating.

While the outages were being experienced worldwide, Australia appeared to be severely affected by the issue. Disruption reported on the site DownDetector included the banks NAB, Commonwealth and Bendigo, and the airlines Virgin Australia and Qantas, as well as internet and phone providers such as Telstra.

National news outlets — including public broadcaster ABC and Sky News Australia — were unable to broadcast on their TV and radio channels for hours. Some news anchors went on air online from dark offices, in front of computers showing “blue screens of death.”

Hospitals in several countries also reported problems.

Britain’s National Health Service said the outage caused problems at most doctors’ offices across England. NHS England said in a statement said the glitch was affecting the appointment and patient record system used across the public health system.

Some hospitals in northern Germany canceled all elective surgery scheduled for Friday, but emergency care was unaffected.

Shipping was disrupted too: A major container hub in the Baltic port of Gdansk, Poland, the Baltic Hub, said it was battling problems resulting from the global system outage.