Microsoft, CrowdStrike outage effects could linger for weeks as scammers attempt to exploit vulnerable

Effects of the major Microsoft outage could linger in Australia for two weeks as criminals pose as airline and IT support workers trying to rip people off. About 3pm AEST on Friday, computer systems around the world crashed after a update by cyber security company Crowdstrike failed, affecting Microsoft users. Computer screens at airlines, supermarkets, banks, media outlets, petrol stations and other major businesses and retailers around the world were faced with the blue screen of death. The root error came from cyber security company CrowdStrike, which was doing a planned upgrade for Microsoft. On Sunday Home Affairs and Cybersecurity Minister Clare O’Neil thanked IT staff and other workers for getting “our economy back up and running” by working during the weekend. “However, it will take time until all affected sectors are completely back online,” the minister said in a statement. “In some cases, we may see teething issues for one or two weeks.” The CrowdStrike upgrades were done overnight in the US, so the unintended effects hit Australia not too long before happy hour on Friday afternoon. National Cybersecurity, CrowdStrike tweet Some 8.5 million devices worldwide were effected, Microsoft revealed. The tech behemoth recommended rebooting computers up to 15 times as one fix if the device had the blue screen. The disruption to flights, shops and technology in general has opened a hole which scammers are trying to exploit. The Cybersecurity Minister repeated warnings for users to beware of scammers, reiterating that messages or contact from anyone offering to fix these issues should be treated with scepticism. “Scammers are trying to exploit the outages caused by the CrowdStrike technical incident,” she said. “Be on the lookout for possible scams and phishing attempts.” People need to be wary of unexpected calls, text messages and emails claiming to be offering help. “You can help by making sure vulnerable people, including elderly relatives, are being extra cautious at this time,” the Cybersecurity Minister said. “Examples that have been reported include people posed as airlines offering to resolve issues with delayed flights and criminals posing as technical support offering to fix affected technology,” she said. A run to the grocery store or service station may require more time as each business gets its systems going again. Triple-0 and emergency services remain unaffected. During the Covid-19 pandemic a National Coordination Mechanism was set up through the Department of Home Affairs. The group pulls together any and all sectors and ministers to respond to any particular crisis. The group has been meeting about the outages during the past few days, and did so again on Sunday morning. CrowdStrike told the meeting they “are now close to rolling out an automatic fix to the issue with their update, as is Microsoft,” Ms O’Neil said. “This should increase the speed at which systems across the economy are back online.”