CrowdStrike IT outage affected 8.5M Windows devices, Microsoft says

Microsoft estimates that a global IT outage caused by a corrupted software update from CrowdStrike disabled 8.5 million Windows devices worldwide. This incident is considered one of the worst cyber events in history, surpassing previous cyber-attacks like WannaCry and NotPetya. CrowdStrike and Microsoft emphasize the importance of quality control checks on updates to prevent such widespread disruptions. Cyber-security experts warn of potential opportunistic hacking attempts following the outage, urging vigilance against fake emails and websites. Hackers are already exploiting the situation by creating malicious websites mimicking CrowdStrike to deceive users. IT managers are advised to rely only on official CrowdStrike channels for information and assistance. The fallout from the IT glitch has prompted global cyber agencies to issue alerts and recommendations to mitigate the risks associated with the outage.