Microsoft Apologizes for Global Outage Impacting Thousands
Technology giant Microsoft has issued an apology after thousands of people worldwide reported issues with its products, including email service Outlook and the popular game Minecraft. The problems were first detected by Downdetector, a website that tracks outages, which showed a significant number of reports on Tuesday afternoon.
This incident comes on the heels of a major global IT outage that left over eight million computers using Microsoft systems inaccessible. The outage was caused by a flawed software update from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike. Microsoft has since implemented a fix for the current issue and stated that there has been some improvement, but they are continuing to monitor the situation to ensure full recovery.
Despite their efforts, Microsoft has informed users that they have “no ETA” for when the issue will be completely resolved. The tech giant has acknowledged the inconvenience caused and is actively investigating the situation to resolve it as soon as possible.
The outage has impacted various Microsoft services, including Microsoft Azure, the cloud computing platform behind many of its services, and Microsoft 365, which includes systems like Microsoft Office and Outlook. Other services that rely on Microsoft’s platforms, such as Cambridge Water and NatWest, have also reported issues.
Computer security expert Professor Alan Woodward expressed surprise at the outage, stating, “It seems slightly surreal that we’re experiencing another serious outage of online services from Microsoft.” He noted that the culprit appears to be network infrastructure and emphasized the importance of having robust systems in place for cloud-based services.
The HM Courts and Tribunals Service in England and Wales has also acknowledged issues with multiple online services due to the outage. Additionally, Dutch football team FC Twente informed their fans that their ticketing website and club app were unavailable as a result of the outage.
As Microsoft prepares to announce its latest financial reports, the focus remains on resolving the ongoing issues and ensuring that services are fully restored for users worldwide.
