'Fix' deployed for bug that caused global IT outage: CrowdStrike

PETALING JAYA: A fix has been deployed for a bug that caused a global IT outage affecting airports, banks and media across the world, the CEO of CrowdStrike antivirus firm said Friday (July 19) according to AFP.

"CrowdStrike is actively working with customers impacted by a defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts... The issue has been identified, isolated and a fix has been deployed," CEO George Kurtz said in a message on social media platform X.

According to Bernama, in light of the ongoing global information technology (IT) system outage, the National Cyber Security Agency (Nacsa) is actively monitoring the situation and working closely with relevant stakeholders to mitigate the impact and restore operations as swiftly as possible.

ALSO READ: CrowdStrike says widespread disruptions were not the result of security incident or cyberattack

Nacsa, in a statement today, said it was made aware of a global outage affecting Microsoft users, which has had significant repercussions worldwide, including in Malaysia, as the disruption has impacted various critical sectors such as television channels, airports and banks.

"In Malaysia, we have observed operational disruptions in key areas. For instance, operations at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Terminal 2 have been affected, leading to manual check-ins and extended waiting times. We want to clarify that this is not a cyber attack, but it is a significant cyber security issue,” it said.

ALSO READ: Global IT outage hits banks, airlines, supermarkets

Nacsa also said the impact of this outage on Malaysia is considerable as it has caused delays and operational challenges across multiple sectors, affecting both businesses and the public.

To address the situation, Nacsa recommends the affected parties to stay alert and continuously monitor announcements, workarounds and updates from vendors to address availability issues and also ensure vigilant monitoring and management of any temporary workarounds to mitigate potential new risks.

"Nacsa is committed to ensuring the security and resilience of our national cyber infrastructure. We will continue to provide support and guidance to affected organisations during this challenging time.

"We are in the process of gathering more detailed statistics and will provide further updates as they become available,” according to the statement.