Global IT Outage Impacting Healthcare Services Blamed on Antivirus Firm
Dr Simon Wallace, chief clinical information officer at Microsoft, revealed that a global IT outage affecting healthcare services was caused by antivirus firm CrowdStrike. Speaking at Digital Health Summer Schools on 18 July 2024, Wallace informed delegates about the issue impacting Windows virtual machines.
Wallace stated, “The issue has been identified to a third party antivirus company called CrowdStrike Falcon, and it’s impacting Windows virtual machines. Microsoft is actively working on mitigation processes to rectify this as soon as possible.”
Although Wallace did not provide specific timelines, he assured that regular updates were being received. The IT outage, which began on the evening of 18 July, led to Windows computers shutting down and affecting services in various sectors, including healthcare, banks, and airports.
NHS England confirmed on 19 July 2024 that the outage was affecting EMIS, a system used by GP practices and pharmacies for various functions. The NHS assured the public that measures were in place to manage the disruption, including using paper patient records and handwritten prescriptions.
CrowdStrike, in a statement to Digital Health News, clarified that the issue was not a security incident or cyberattack. They mentioned that the defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts had been identified, isolated, and fixed. Customers were directed to the support portal for the latest updates.
GP practices and healthcare centers across the UK took to social media platforms to inform patients about the disruption. Wilmslow Health Centre and Ellergreen Medical Centre highlighted the impact of the IT outage on their services, urging patients to be patient until systems were back online.
The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) also acknowledged the disruption in some community pharmacies and assured that they were working with NHSE to address the issue promptly. EMIS, in a tweet, acknowledged the third-party issue causing the outage and assured users that efforts were underway to restore service.
