The New Era: FireBreak ??? ??

In today's networked world, system stability and security in IT are crucial. Recent incidents have highlighted critical vulnerabilities, emphasising the need for a new IT maintenance and security approach. Introducing FireBreak, a revolutionary solution designed to protect organisations and customers from future disruption. #ITsecurity #FireBreak #Cybersecurity

The friendly fire caused widespread disruption.

Recently, a?CrowdStrike?update led to significant disruption, causing numerous Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) errors on Windows machines. This incident affected around 8.5 million devices globally and impacted various sectors, including healthcare, finance, aviation, retail, transport, and public services. #CyberSecurity #TechFail #ITIssues #CrowdStrike #BSOD #WindowsTrouble

The Widespread Impact

#Healthcare

• Hospitals and clinics faced significant downtime.
• Patient care was severely affected, with delays in treatments and diagnostic services.

#Finance

• Banks and brokerage firms experienced substantial disruptions.
• Transactions and customer service were impacted, leading to potential financial losses.

#Aviation

• Several airlines had to ground flights due to server issues.
• Widespread delays and cancellations affected passengers and airline operations.

#Retail

• Major e-commerce platforms and retail chains reported outages.
• Sales and operations were hindered, resulting in potential revenue losses and customer dissatisfaction.

#Transport

• Railway operations were disrupted, affecting transportation services.
• Delays and logistical challenges for goods transportation were widely reported.

#Government

• Various government services were interrupted.
• Public services faced delays, impacting citizens relying on government support and services.

Detailed Impact Report

A Reuters report detailed widespread disruptions across various sectors:

#Avivation

• BER - Berlin Brandenburg Airport : Temporarily halted all flights.
• 汉莎航空 's Eurowings : Halted domestic flights in Germany and to/from Britain.
• #Spanish airport operator Aena and #Lisbon: Experienced disruptions.
• Schiphol Amsterdam Airport - AMS and Brussels Airport : Affected.
• KLM Royal Dutch Airlines : Suspended most operations; 法航 faced disruptions.
• Turkish Airlines : Encountered ticketing, check-in, and booking problems.
• American Airlines , Delta Air Lines , and United Airlines : Halted flights but later resumed operations.
• Ryanair - Europe's Favourite Airline : Cancelled a small number of flights.
• Qantas and Sydney Airport : Faced delays.
• London Gatwick and London Stansted Airport Airport: 90% of flights are delayed or cancelled.
• Indian carriers, SpiceJet Limited , IndiGo (InterGlobe Aviation Ltd) , and others experienced problems.
• Cebu Pacific Air (Philippines): Technical issues due to the Microsoft outage.

#Finance

• 摩根大通 : Most ATMs are operating normally; ongoing restoration efforts.
• Commonwealth Bank Australia: Resolved earlier issues with PayID transfers.
• London and Singapore's oil and gas trading desks: Struggled with trade executions.
• Macquarie Capital : Liquidity issues for unexpired warrants on 香港交易所 .
• South African lenders CAPITEC BANK HOLDINGS and Absa Group : Restored services after disruptions.
• LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group) 's Workspace platform: Outage affecting user access.
• German insurer Allianz : Major outages impacting employee logins.
• German banks: Reported unspecified disruptions.
• Barclays : Smart Investor platform impacted.
• Brazilian lender Bradesco : Digital platforms unavailable.

#Media

• Sky News (Britain): Resumed broadcasting after an hours-long outage.
• Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) : Major network outage.
• Sky News Australia : Regular programming disrupted.

#EmergencyServices and #Healthcare

• England's NHS : Disruptions in booking systems and patient records.
• #Dutch hospitals: Scaled down operations.
• Victoria Police Department (Australia): Internal system issues.
• Copenhagen Fire Department : Urged people to call 112 for fires due to alarm transmission issues.
• German hospitals in #Luebeck and #Kiel: Cancelled elective operations.
• Mass General Brigham: Cancelled non-urgent medical visits.
• Quest Diagnostics and Labcorp : Reduced capacity and longer wait times.
• Providence Hospital operator: Restored some systems but faced widespread issues.

#Shipping and #Logistics

• 马士基 : Terminals were affected but returned to operation within hours.
• 联邦快递 : Substantial disruptions but resumed global operations.
• Union Pacific : Experienced varying impacts but continued operations.
• Port Houston : System failures but restored operations.

Others

• #Critical infrastructure in #Germany: Affected.
• New Zealand's parliamentary systems: Impacted.
• Australia's Telstra Group: System disruptions.
• Baltic Hub container terminal (Poland): Hit by the Microsoft outage.
• Olympics Paris 2024 organising committee: Slowed operations.
• Maruti Suzuki India Limited : Briefly halted production and resumed operations.
• Verizon : Warned of potential service impacts but reported no network issues.
• Manchester United : Postponed ticket release.
• 星巴克 : Mobile order-ahead features are down.
• Enbridge : Impacts on business applications.

The Unseen Linux Issue

While the impact of the CrowdStrike update on Windows systems was widely reported, a similar issue affecting Linux systems went largely unnoticed. According to a report by Computing, in April 2024, CrowdStrike updates caused significant outages on Linux servers, impacting several sectors.

Case Study: Civic Tech Lab

A civic tech lab faced a complete shutdown after a CrowdStrike update rendered their Debian Linux servers unbootable. Despite Debian being listed as a supported configuration by CrowdStrike, the update was incompatible, leading to severe operational disruptions.

Users who upgraded to Rocky Linux 9.4 reported similar incidents. These users experienced server crashes linked to a kernel bug triggered by the CrowdStrike update. This recurring issue highlights a troubling pattern of inadequate testing and a lack of compatibility checks in software updates.

These incidents underscore the urgent need for more robust IT maintenance practices. Companies must ensure thorough compatibility testing before deploying updates to prevent such disruptive outcomes.

Introducing FireBreak ??? ??

The recent global IT outages underscore the critical need for enhanced IT maintenance and security measures. FireBreak is a comprehensive solution to address these challenges, ensuring a more secure and resilient digital future.

What is #FireBreak? ??? ??

#FireBreak operates at Layer-1, providing real-time hardware disconnect capabilities. This dynamic physical network segmentation allows instant control over network connections, significantly reducing the attack surface and enhancing security.

Key Features of FireBreak ??? ??

• Non-Internet Remote Physical Connection Management: Secure connections and disconnections without relying on Internet connectivity.
• Seamless Integration: Protocol-agnostic design ensures compatibility with diverse systems.
• 24-Hour Guardian: Around-the-clock protection, ready to disconnect instantly in case of a threat.

Advantages of FireBreak ??? ??

• Autonomous Operation: Ideal for secure environments requiring minimal human intervention.
• Modular Design: Adaptable for various operational environments.
• Secure Access: Customisable controls for administrative operations.

Benefits of FireBreak ??? ??

• Operational Resilience: Transformed resilience through dynamic segmentation.
• Collapsed Attack Surface: Hides and isolates critical assets, reducing exposure.
• Fail-Safe by Design: Ensures ultimate segmentation and security.

Steps to Ensure Future Protection with FireBreak ??? ??

1. Comprehensive testing: Ensure all updates are thoroughly tested on all supported systems and configurations.
2. Staggered rollouts: Updates are rolled out in stages to enable controlled testing and minimise the potential impact on the entire system.
3. Robust contingency plans: Provide detailed backup and recovery plans to manage potential outages quickly and efficiently.
4. Better communication: Ensure clear communication channels with software providers to resolve problems quickly.
5. Regular audits: Conduct security and performance audits to identify vulnerabilities and areas for improvement.
6. Training and awareness: Provide training programmes for IT staff to immediately identify and respond to update-related problems.

Conclusion

The recent outages and the unnoticed Linux problems emphasise the urgent need for improved IT maintenance and security measures. With FireBreak ??? ??, organisations can overcome these challenges and ensure a more secure and resilient future. The FireBreak era represents a significant advance in securing digital infrastructures, providing a robust solution to prevent disruption and protect critical systems.

We would love to ensure you and your business is equiped ahead of this new era. Lets talk.