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Why is Microsoft365 down? Is it a cyberattack? How Crowdstrike outage impacts Tennessee

    A global technology outage is affecting everything from PCs to large businesses on Friday morning.

    Microsoft365 users are reporting outages that have now taken down PCs, airlines, media companies, banks and telecoms around the world. The software giant said it was aware of and working to resolve an issue “affecting users' ability to access various Microsoft 365 apps and services.”

    On Friday morning, Crowdstrike, a US company that claims to be used by more than half of the Fortune 500, reported that one of its recent content updates contained a defect affecting Microsoft's Windows operating system.

    Here's what we know so far about the outage and its impact.

    What is Crowdstrike?

    Crowdstrike is an American company founded in 2012 and currently operates the world's most advanced cloud-native platform that protects and supports the people, processes and technologies that power modern enterprises, according to the company's website.

    Was the Microsoft outage a cyber attack?

    After Crowdstrike stated that it was a bug in an update, the company also added that the incident was “not a security incident or cyberattack.”

    “The issue has been identified, isolated, and a fix has been implemented,” a statement from Crowdstrike said. Microsoft, meanwhile, said that “the root cause has been resolved,” but that there are still residual effects on some of its Microsoft 365 apps and services.

    What caused the Microsoft365 outage? What’s happening?

    The blue screen of death.

    We all know it. According to an alert Crowdstrike sent to its customers and seen by Reuters, the company’s software “Falcon Sensor” causes Microsoft Windows to crash and display a blue screen.

    Why are planes grounded? Airports in Tennessee, US affected

    According to reports and social media posts from airports in Tennessee and the United States, hundreds of flights were canceled Friday morning. Spirit, American Airlines, Delta Airlines and United Airlines were among those that grounded or canceled flights Friday morning, disrupting the travel plans of thousands of people.

    According to flight tracking website FlightAware, more than 600 flights were canceled and more than 900 were delayed as of 5:45 a.m. CT.

    Airports across Tennessee have been affected by the outage. Passengers should check with their airlines to see if their flights are affected.

    Who is affected by the Microsoft outage?

    The Microsoft outage has upended systems around the world and disrupted the daily lives of many. Here are some of the systems and groups around the world that experienced a problem due to the outage on Friday.

    • Airlines in the US including Delta Airlines, American Airlines, United Airlines and Spirit

    • Memphis International Airport

    • McGhee Tyson-Knoxville Airport

    • Nashville International Airport

    • Airports in Europe, Singapore, Hong Kong and India

    • The London Stock Exchange

    • Trains in the United Kingdom

    • British broadcaster Sky News off air

    • Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority in Washington DC

    • Metropolitan Transportation Authority in New York City

    • The German University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein is suspending all elective procedures and closing its outpatient clinics on Friday

    • In Australia, media, banking and telecom companies suffered outages

    This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Why is Microsoft Down? How Crowdstrike's Global Outage is Impacting Tennessee