From Our Desk: How Do I Connect with the Right Channel Partner: A Go-to-Market Strategy for Success

“Your device ran into a problem and needs to restart. We’re just collecting some error info, and then we’ll restart for you.”

Have you also experienced this BSOD or ‘Blue Screen of Death?’

The world came to a halt when Microsoft IT Outage broke out. The system were down, boarding and check-in came down to manual processes, the business experienced downtime, railways got stuck, and panic was at its peak.

The last day was full of chaos and panic, which raised heated discussions and the question, “Is it the triggering end of the SaaS-based products?”

The news was all over the internet; people took to X (former: Twitter) to post their anxiety, handwritten boarding passes, and blue screens, and a few posted happy faces, as for them, the weekend started early. A few instances were reported where computers repeatedly restarted, resulting in lost data and valuable time.

This was not a cyberattack; it was just a system update at the third-party end that took the world by storm. But then the question arises: If just an update can do this, do we need to shift from SaaS-based products?

What is the chaos about?

Microsoft Windows users worldwide, including those in India, Australia, Germany, the United States, the UK, and more, saw a blue screen issue on their systems, causing them to restart or shut down automatically. Companies like Dell Technologies have stated that a recent update by third-party antivirus software caused this crash.

The outage, which began on Thursday evening and affected Microsoft’s Central US region, crippled essential systems for numerous airlines, including American Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Allegiant, and Sun Country, and paralleling affecting the Indian Airlines – IndiGo, SpiceJet, Air India, and Akasa Air, reporting substantial issues because of the current Microsoft Azure Outage. The outage impacted many Indian organizations, shutting down systems and halting their work.

Why did it happen?

A third-party cybersecurity platform offering security solutions to consumers and organizations was responsible. Falcon Identity Threat Protection prevents identity-driven breaches in real- time by leveraging a single sensor and unified threat interface with attack correlation across endpoints, workloads, and identities.

According to reports, the flawed update was triggered by the cybersecurity platform’s Falcon Sensor, which malfunctioned and created conflicts with the Windows Operating System.

The CEO of the third-party cybersecurity platform recognized the error, saying, “Our engineers are currently working to rectify this issue, and there is no need to submit a support case. Once this problem has been resolved, the organization will tell its customers.”

Microsoft verified that the Azure outage was fixed early Friday. Still, the disruption served as a sharp reminder of the risks associated with critical infrastructure that relies mainly on cloud services. This disruption impacted airlines, banks, supermarkets, organizations, media outlets, and stock exchanges saw a Sharpe fall.

What is Blue Screen of Death?

When a critical error strikes, the ‘BSOD’ or ‘Blue Screen of Death’ appears on Windows operating systems. It occurs when the system crashes due to a severe problem preventing it from operating securely. When this mistake occurs, the computer restarts abruptly, and any unsaved data will likely be lost. Those using Mac, Windows, and Linux systems faced this BSOD.

So, much of the chaos and situation that is going on is ‘alarming.’ It’s like telling us there is something to be taken care off. In the same mindful state, the question again arises; is it the triggering situation for SaaS-based products? Are they not reliable? What if this happens again?

Though this global IT outage has been identified and a fix has been deployed but have it not made technological leaders think over it.

What is SaaS-based technology, and how does it work?

Software as a Service (SaaS) is a cloud-based software distribution technique to consumers. Rather than purchasing software outright, people subscribe to apps through the internet. The software supplier hosts and manages the code, servers, and database. Users can access SaaS applications through either a browser or an app. The SaaS provider automatically adjusts the service up or down in response to usage.

SaaS removes the need to install, update, and manage software. Users pay only for the software they use, and can access it from any device with an internet connection.

SaaS companies often use subscription-based pricing methods, such as a fixed annual price or tier-level pricing per individual or group.

SaaS applications include Gmail, Slack, Dropbox, Salesforce, and Office 365. It is believed that 65% of SaaS apps are unsanctioned, which means they were installed without the IT department’s authorization.  The usage of unauthorized SaaS apps can result in a variety of security issues, including data leakage and viruses.

In 2021, when the world witnessed the SaaS capital index peaking, it fell sharply a few months later, hitting rock bottom in 2022. The situation aroused questions, whether Artificial Intelligence (AI) played a part in this drop. Or was this just a minor glitch for SaaS?

Now, on Friday, when the global IT outage affected the systems at large, the fingers again started pointing towards the authenticity of SaaS-based Solutions.  

What do you think? Will SaaS-solutions see a downfall in the near future?

We’d love to hear from you, share your thoughts on this with us.

Team IndiaIT360

IndiaIT360 is passionate about fostering community within the tech industry. IndiaIT360's commitment to staying abreast of the latest trends and advancements in the IT industry ensures that their content is not only informative but also insightful and forward-thinking. Through their writing, they aim to demystify complex technological concepts, making them accessible to a broad audience.