KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysia Computer Emergency Response Team (MyCert) has laid out some temporary workarounds suggested by CrowdStrike Holdings Inc in the wake of Microsoft’s global cloud outage.
In a statement issued today, MyCert advised those who use the Microsoft system with the CrowdStrike Falcon Sensor update to reboot into safe mode or recovery environment.
It then laid out the next step to rebooting, which is to navigate to the C:\Windows\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike directory, locate the file matching “C-00000291*.sys”, delete it and boot the host normally afterwards.
“In general, MyCert advises users of these devices to stay updated on the vendor’s latest security announcements and follow best practice security policies to determine which updates should be applied.”
Earlier, Microsoft reported that it had identified the root cause of the outage and successfully restored the majority of affected services. Nevertheless, the company noted that some customers may still face issues.
The outage had affected various Microsoft 365 services, including Teams. The outage among Windows 10 users was attributed to a new CrowdStrike update.
CrowdStrike is an American cybersecurity technology company based in Austin, Texas. It provides penetration workload and endpoint security, threat intelligence and cyberattack services.
The outage has affected several major companies globally, including news outlets, airlines and airports.
Locally, Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd confirmed that it is unaffected. The same goes for Malaysia Airlines and Singapore Airlines.
However, Scoot, Firefly and AirAsia announced that they are experiencing technical issues, especially with their check-in systems, including online and kiosk services.
The National Cyber Security Agency said the Microsoft cloud services outage, which affected major sectors around the world, has dealt a significant blow to Malaysian businesses and industries.
“This is not a cyberattack, but it is a significant cybersecurity issue. The impact of this outage on Malaysia is considerable. It has caused delays and operational challenges across multiple sectors, affecting both businesses and the public.” – July 19, 2024