Tessa Quinn
On July 19, 2024, a global IT outage disrupted several industries, including airlines, banks, shops, broadcasters, and hospitals. Hospitals and clinics across the United States were affected, with many reporting that their computers were down, leading to surgery and appointment cancellations and delays. This incident highlighted the vulnerability of hospital computer systems and the need for diversified software and improved backup systems. The outage was caused by a faulty update from CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity firm, affecting Microsoft-based computers and resulting in a devastating bug. While CrowdStrike deployed a fix, hospitals grappled with the impact, reverting to pen-and-paper documentation and manual processes.
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What You'll Learn
- Hospitals in the US and worldwide were forced to cancel surgeries and appointments
- The global IT outage was caused by a faulty update from CrowdStrike
- Hospitals are no strangers to massive computer outages
- Doctors and nurses had to revert to pen and paper, slowing down everything
- The glitch impacted everything from airlines to television stations to government agencies
Hospitals in the US and worldwide were forced to cancel surgeries and appointments
In the United States, at least 12 hospitals or hospital systems were impacted, with some reporting that they had to cancel elective procedures. Major hospitals affected include Mass General Brigham, which canceled all elective and non-emergency surgeries, and Cincinnati Children's, which advised patients to arrive at their scheduled time but warned of likely delays. Boston-based Brigham and Women's Hospital also canceled all non-urgent surgeries, procedures, and medical visits. Additionally, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City paused any procedures requiring anesthesia due to "system issues."
Hospitals outside the US also experienced significant disruptions. In the UK, the Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust declared a critical incident affecting radiotherapy treatments. Hospitals in Canada, Germany, and Israel reported issues with their digital services. The global outage extended beyond the healthcare industry, impacting airlines, banks, shops, broadcasters, and government agencies.
During the outage, medical staff had to resort to documenting everything via pen and paper and calling in prescriptions. Some hospitals also faced challenges in accessing critical systems and diagnostic tools, such as electrocardiograms and CT scans, which hindered their ability to provide efficient care. The full recovery from the outage is expected to take several days.
As of July 22, 2024, some hospitals are still experiencing issues with their computer systems. It is not specified whether these issues are related to the global IT outage or isolated incidents.
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The global IT outage was caused by a faulty update from CrowdStrike
On 19 July 2024, a faulty update from American cybersecurity company CrowdStrike caused a global IT outage. The update, distributed to CrowdStrike's Falcon Sensor security software, specifically affected Microsoft Windows computers running the software. As a result, an estimated 8.5 million systems crashed, displaying the infamous blue screen of death. Within hours, a fix was released, but because many affected computers had to be fixed manually, outages continued across various services.
The impact of the outage was widespread, with daily life, businesses, and governments disrupted worldwide. Many industries were affected, including airlines, airports, banks, hospitals, manufacturing, stock markets, broadcasting, gas stations, retail stores, and governmental services. In the United States, several major hospitals were forced to cancel surgeries and appointments due to the outage. Hospitals reported being unable to access medical records and facing challenges in managing critically ill patients. At least 12 hospitals or hospital systems across the country were impacted, with some cancellations extending beyond the initial day of the outage.
The root cause of the issue was a faulty sensor configuration update specific to Windows systems. A flaw in CrowdStrike's Content Validator component allowed the faulty version of the update to pass validation despite containing an error. This error was a mismatch between the number of input fields in the IPC Template Type and the actual inputs provided by the sensor code.
The global impact of the outage reflected CrowdStrike's dominance in the market. Over half of Fortune 500 companies and many government bodies, including top US cybersecurity agencies, use CrowdStrike's software. Insurers estimated the financial impact of the outage on US Fortune 500 companies to be around $5.4 billion, with the worldwide financial damage estimated at over $10 billion.
Following the incident, CrowdStrike changed its content update procedures to prevent similar occurrences. Updates now undergo internal testing and phased implementation, and customers can choose their level of update adoption.
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Hospitals are no strangers to massive computer outages
The University of Miami Health System, for example, warned patients to expect delays while its IT teams worked to restore computer access. Mount Sinai West Hospital in New York City and the University of Kentucky's campus, including Kentucky Hospital Systems, also experienced disruptions. Boston-based Brigham and Women's Hospital canceled all non-urgent surgeries, procedures, and medical visits, while Cone Health in North Carolina and Corewell Health in Michigan also canceled or delayed procedures.
During these outages, hospitals typically pivot to offline solutions such as writing patient notes and prescriptions by hand. However, this can slow down operations and affect clinical decision-making, as doctors are unable to access critical systems and diagnostic tools. For instance, Dr. Rian Kabir, a third-year psychiatry resident at the University of Louisville, was unable to review electronic patient records or access the drug monitoring program he needed.
To mitigate the impact of future outages, hospitals are advised to have paper backup systems and ensure that vital devices such as IV pumps, blood pressure monitors, and ventilators are isolated from the internet. Additionally, healthcare systems should diversify the software they use and consider cloud computing to increase resilience and stagger upgrades.
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Doctors and nurses had to revert to pen and paper, slowing down everything
On July 19, 2024, a global IT outage disrupted several major U.S. hospitals, forcing them to cancel surgeries and doctor's appointments. The issue was caused by a faulty update from CrowdStrike, an American cybersecurity technology firm. Hospitals and health systems across the United States were affected, with at least 12 hospitals or hospital systems impacted.
During the outage, doctors and nurses had to revert to pen and paper, slowing down everything. They were unable to access electronic patient records, review electrocardiograms or CT scans, or submit prescriptions electronically. This old-school approach to documentation impacted the efficiency and capability of the clinics.
Dr. Rian Kabir, a third-year psychiatry resident at the University of Louisville, described the challenges he faced during the outage: "When I came in, every single computer was down. I couldn’t review electronic patient records, access the drug monitoring program, or submit prescriptions electronically. We've had to handwriting everything, and it has slowed down our clinic significantly."
Cardiologists were particularly affected, as they were unable to review electrocardiograms, critical tests that measure electrical activity in the heart. They were forced to rely on alternative methods, such as bedside ultrasound machines, which are not as effective as CT scans in assessing lung conditions.
The University of Miami Health System warned patients to expect delays while working to restore their computer systems. They emphasized the use of paper orders to disseminate information during the outage. Hospitals are recommended to have paper backup systems and ensure that vital devices like IV pumps, blood pressure monitors, and ventilators are isolated from the internal network.
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The glitch impacted everything from airlines to television stations to government agencies
On July 19, 2024, a global IT outage disrupted several major industries, including airlines, banks, shops, broadcasters, and hospitals. This outage was caused by a faulty update from CrowdStrike, an American cybersecurity technology firm. The problem was not due to a cyberattack but rather a software issue that had been identified and fixed. However, the impact of this glitch was widespread and far-reaching.
Several major airlines, including United, American, and Delta, were affected by the outage and were forced to ground flights, causing global delays and cancellations. Aviation technology company FlightAware reported that the tech glitch was responsible for more than half of the US's 1,352 flight delays and cancellations before 8 am ET on Friday. This disruption caused significant frustration for passengers and prompted an investigation by government agencies.
Broadcasters and media organizations also experienced technical difficulties. Several television stations and media companies reported issues with their computer systems, impacting their ability to deliver news and entertainment to viewers.
Additionally, the outage impacted government agencies and police forces. The Department of Health and Human Services issued an urgent alert, reporting that multiple government agencies were affected. Alaska State Troopers also reported that their 911 services were down across the state.
The healthcare industry was particularly affected by the outage, with at least 12 major hospitals and health systems experiencing disruptions. Hospitals were forced to cancel surgeries, appointments, and elective procedures due to issues with internal and external systems on Microsoft-based computers. Pharmacy chains, such as Rite Aid, also experienced minimal impacts but remained fully operational.
The global IT outage caused by the faulty software update from CrowdStrike had far-reaching consequences, impacting critical industries such as airlines, broadcasters, government agencies, and healthcare. While CrowdStrike deployed a fix, some lingering issues persisted, causing disruptions and delays worldwide.
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Frequently asked questions
No, they are not. Hospitals and health systems across the United States were affected by a global IT outage on Friday, July 19, 2024. The issue has since been resolved.
The outage was caused by a faulty update from CrowdStrike, an American cybersecurity technology firm. The problem was a result of a routine software update that accidentally introduced a devastating bug into Windows computers.
The outage stalled internal and external systems on Microsoft-based computers. Hospitals were forced to cancel surgeries and appointments, and medical staff had to revert to documenting everything manually.
