A day without internet? July 19, 2024- A day to remember

July 19, 2024, will undoubtedly be remembered as a day technological disruption, marked by one of the largest IT outages in recent history. If you are making guesses already, you are right. It was the CrowdStrike Falcon Sensor software outrage.

The incident resulted in a dual-pronged impact. On one hand, countless professionals encountered the infamous "Blue Screen of Death" (BSOD) on their Windows PCs, leaving devices inoperable. According to a report by The Economic Times, an estimated 8.5 million Microsoft devices were affected, causing substantial productivity losses.

Simultaneously, the world experienced a broader connectivity crisis. Critical platforms such as Microsoft 365, Azure, Amazon Web Services, and popular social media outlets like Instagram and eBay were affected. This global outage echoed through numerous industries and sectors, like finance, aviation, multinational corporations, media broadcasting, and public transportation, leading to widespread chaos. The Channel Company, a popular Media company based in the USA, reported particularly severe consequences for the airline industry in the United States, with estimated losses of $143.38 million, while the software and IT services sector incurred losses of $112.59 million.

In a world that has progressed to reaching different planets, who would have thought of witnessing handwritten boarding passes for reaching a new city. From manufacturing to health, industries the globe fumbled seeing the massive connectivity disruption.

Needless to say, our reliance on the internet and its boon of connectivity is so ingrained that this incident acted as a small nudge, a stark reminder of the power it beholds.