Microsoft users worldwide, including banks and airlines, reported widespread outages on Friday. This occurred hours after the tech giant announced it was gradually resolving an issue affecting access to Microsoft 365 apps and services.
In Australia, news outlets reported significant disruptions in bank services due to lost access to computer systems. Australia’s largest bank, Commonwealth Bank, noted that some customers were unable to transfer money. Other affected Australian banks included National Australia Bank (NAB) and Bendigo. Social media users expressed difficulties accessing financial services from these institutions.
Microsoft 365 posted on X that they were “working on rerouting the impacted traffic to alternate systems to alleviate impact in a more expedient fashion” and observed “a positive trend in service availability.”
The outage extended to other sectors as well. Australian stores like Woolworths faced long queues due to payment system failures. Major airlines, such as India’s Akasa, IndiGo, Air India, and SpiceJet, experienced operational challenges. In the US, low-cost carriers like Frontier Airlines, Allegiant, and SunCountry also reported issues affecting their services.
Additionally, millions of Windows users globally encountered the Blue Screen of Death, leading to unexpected computer shutdowns or restarts. This issue caused repeated computer restarts in some cases, resulting in lost unsaved data and valuable time for users.
