A major IT outage at CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity firm based in Austin, Texas, caused widespread disruptions across multiple industries globally on Friday. The outage affected banks, media outlets, supermarkets, airlines, hospitals, and businesses in regions including Australia, the US, and Europe. Key services such as 911 emergency services in several US states, Microsoft services, and television channels, including Sky News, were disrupted. Multiple airlines initiated ground stops, and payment systems were also affected. The outage caused Windows computers to shut down suddenly, leading to significant operational challenges for affected entities. The issue was linked to CrowdStrike $CRWD.