JulynineteenRecently, a large number of Microsoft Windows system users worldwide reported experiencing blue screen crashes. at leasttwentyThe business systems of transportation, finance, healthcare, retail and other industries or public services in multiple countries have been affected. Among them, system disruptions are particularly severe in Singapore, India, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States.

It is worth noting that Microsoft systems have not encountered such major failures or service interruptions for the first time. In recent years, with the acceleration of global digitalization, various system failures and security issues have occurred frequently, causing huge losses and troubles to enterprises and individual users. The following table summarizes some accident situations:

Major failures and interruptions of Microsoft over the years (incomplete statistics)

According to foreign media reports, the incident was caused by CrowdStrike's use of MicrosoftWindowsThe client of the system has sent a flawed software update, which has compatibility issues with the Windows system, resulting in blue screens on computers that have installed the security software.CrowdStrikeWe are an American cybersecurity service provider specializing in cloud workloads and endpoint security, threat intelligence, and network attack response software markets.two thousand and nineteenAfter being listed on NASDAQ in, its market value rapidly climbed, becoming one of the world's largest listed cybersecurity companies by market value. Having a close market share in the global security software market15%Share, nearthree hundredHome Wealthfive hundredStrong enterprises and numerous government agencies mainly use its products.

Network security experts say that this incident is one of the largest IT failures in history, affecting approximately the worldeight hundred and fiftyInstall Microsoft on 10000 unitsWindowsOperating system devices. According to flight tracking websites, a large number of flights have been delayed or cancelled due to system crashes, causing significant impact on the global air transportation system. More than 23000 flights have been delayed in the United States alone, and computer systems of multiple financial institutions, hospitals, and medical institutions have been paralyzed, resulting in the inability to provide services normally. Tesla CEO Elon Musk·Musk stated that this interruption has triggered“The automotive supply chain is paralyzed”. The US House Homeland Security Committee even requested CrowdStrike CorporationCEO Kurtz went to the Congressional Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection to testify about this major IT incident.

A large number of flights have been delayed or cancelled due to system crashes

After the incident, CrowdStrike quickly acknowledged the mistake, released a fix, and promised to restore all affected systems as soon as possible. Microsoft Enterprise is also working closely with CrowdStrike to develop scalable solutions to help fix issues. However, due to the inability of the blue screen system to start, users need to restart the computer in safe mode for operation.

Although not all of the above incidents were directly caused by a single security software, they demonstrate the widespread impact that technical failures or security software issues can have on Microsoft systems and their users. The CrowdStrike incident, as a rare global failure directly caused by a failed software update, fully exposed the risks of high dependence on information technology in modern society, the vulnerability of global technological infrastructure, and the importance of network security, triggering a profound reflection on network security and technology dependence.

It is worth noting that this incident has had relatively little impact on China, with the main affected being related foreign-funded enterprises and some companies using Microsoft data centers. This is mainly because its structure is too deeply involved with the US government, and Chinese domestic enterprises have a strong influence on itCrowdStrikeLow usage rate of the product. China has vigorously promoted in recent years“Go beautify it”Strategy has embarked on the path of independent research and development in areas such as hardware, firmware, computers, switches, routers, firewalls, operating systems, chips, and cloud services. Chinese companies are also more inclined to choose to use domestically developed products.

In the future, with the deepening development of digital transformation, countries and enterprises will face more severe security challenges and technology dependence risks. While promoting digital transformation, relevant institutions must strengthen the protection of critical information systems to ensure their stability and reliability. Therefore, strengthening network security protection, improving software quality, adopting diversified technology selection, and developing emergency response plans will become important means for enterprises to cope with these challenges. At the same time, enterprises and regulatory agencies pay more attention to the security and stability of the supply chain, and build a safer, more reliable, and stable digital ecological environment.