Massive Global IT Outage Knocks Out Flights, Banking, Media, Casinos

Posted on: July 19, 2024, 06:19h. 

Last updated on: July 19, 2024, 06:19h.

Philip Conneller @casinoorgphilc Read More
Expertise: Gaming Business, Regulation, Tribal Gaming.

A mass technology outage is causing disruption to industries across the globe. On Friday, planes were grounded, TV stations knocked offline, and banking services disrupted after a widespread Microsoft 365 system failure caused chaos worldwide.

Microsoft 365, outage, system failure, Crowdstrike, casinos
Travelers experiencing delays at Hamburg Airport in Germany on Friday morning, above, after the Microsoft 365 outage knocked out communication systems, leaving planes grounded worldwide. (Image: AP)

More than 1,000 flights have been delayed by the issue, which is believed to be linked to an error on a software update from cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike. Public transport systems across the world have also been affected.

Casinos, Sportsbooks Impact

Early reports suggest land-based casinos and online sportsbooks have also been impacted by the outage. On Thursday night, visitors to the Green Valley Ranch casino in Hendeson, Nev. reported that every single slot machine was down, and staff members were having to cash out players manually, leading to long delays.

Las Vegas Locally reported on X that “casino computer systems are crashing all over town.” One X user posted images from the South Point Casino showing the venue’s TV monitors had been affected by the “blue screen of death.”

Australian betting giant Tab reported that its land-based and online services had been completely halted by the system failure. Its competitor, Sportsbet, reported similar challenges.

“We’re facing a total blackout,” a TAB insider told The Syndey Morning Herald. “This has impacted both our online and retail operations, putting us in the same predicament as many other companies.”

No Easy Fix

The outage is not believed to be linked to foul play. The issue is reportedly related to Texas-based CrowdStrike’s ‘Falcon sensor,’ which monitors the security of large networks of PCs.

Security experts say it’s not an easy fix because it requires manual intervention on every affected computer, which will likely cause disruption for days to come.

Microsoft 365 posted on X that the company was “working on rerouting the impacted traffic to alternate systems to alleviate impact in a more expedient fashion” and that they were “observing a positive trend in service availability.”

Crowdstrike shares plunged by 21% in early pre-market trade. Shares in Microsoft were also down, as were travel and leisure stocks, as investors anticipated ongoing disruption to flights at the height of the summer vacation season.

This is a developing story.