Ours is a world connected and indeed run by computers. It would be virtually impossible to print this newspaper without the aid of computers. In fact, without noticing, computers have quietly taken over almost every aspect of our life, from travel to health. And that is without even factoring new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning.
The extent to which computers dictate and control our lives became apparent on Friday, when a worldwide computer or Information Technology (IT) outage, already dubbed the biggest in history, hit our computer screens, giving them the dreaded “Blue Screen of Death”. This is when computers get completely struck, unable to come to life again. The outage came as cyber security giant CrowdStrike experienced a major disruption early on Friday following an issue with a recent tech update. This in turn affected computer networks relying on recent versions of Microsoft Windows, which is pretty much most of them. Travel was perhaps the most affected sector, with nearly 5,000 flights grounded across the world. But train networks, hospitals, banks, energy supplies, media organisations and educational institutions were all affected to some degree.
CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz has since said that the company is “actively working with customers impacted by a defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts,” stressing that Mac and Linux hosts are not affected. CrowdStrike, though not a household name, is a US$ 83 billion company with more than 20,000 subscribers around the world including Amazon and Microsoft. Fortunately, Kurtz said it was not a security incident or a cyber attack. The issue has been identified, isolated and a fix has been deployed, he said on Social Media. Microsoft too said it was mobilising all resources at its disposal to get their customers and clients back on track, literally in the case of trains.
This is yet another incident that highlights the vulnerability of the world’s interconnected technologies. After the outage was resolved, companies were dealing with the aftermath – for example, backlogs of delayed and cancelled flights and missed online orders. Businesses are also facing hard questions about how to avoid future blackouts triggered by the very technology meant to safeguard their systems from hackers, viruses and other attacks.
CrowdStrike has a large share of the highly competitive cyber security market, leading some industry analysts to question whether control over such critical software should remain with just a few powerful tech companies. The outage also raised concerns that many organisations are not adequately prepared to implement contingency plans when an IT system, or a piece of software within it, goes down.
Incidentally, companies such as the US low-cost airline Southwest escaped the whole drama because they were using much older versions of Windows, for which updates are not even available. Hence, Southwest continued to function as usual, without any cancellations or delays, while its legacy competitors such as United and Delta were virtually grounded. Some airlines such as India’s IndiGo turned to manual operations to keep their planes flying. This shows that the latest technology may always not be the greatest.
But the biggest fear is that cyber criminals or even certain State actors could launch similar attacks that could cripple virtually all services from travel to banking, exploiting vulnerabilities in computer systems. On May 7, 2021, a “ransomware” attack on the Colonial Oil Pipeline’s computer network in the US captured headlines around the world with pictures of snaking lines of cars at gas stations across the Eastern Seaboard and panicked Americans filling bags with fuel, fearful of not being able to get to work or get their children to school. Ransomware attacks are becoming more frequent, whereby cyber criminals, terror groups and hackers target big organisations and destroy their computer networks to demand a ransom to restore them to normal levels. This has become a lucrative business. It has also been suggested that such groups could gain control of nuclear or chemical weapons through cyber attacks, which would have very serious consequences for humanity.
There is another danger – some experts argue that AI could one day take over the world and even destroy humanity as depicted in the hit movie Terminator, as computers get more sophisticated. Neural and quantum computer networks, which are many times more powerful than today’s supercomputers, are coming online. These, armed with AI and ML, could help us with everything from cancer screening to education. But they could get to a point where they no longer heed human instructions and begin to act on their own.
The economic damage caused by Friday’s IT outrage has not been quantified, but it is certain to run into billions of dollars. This shows the need for better protections and backup systems for IT networks, which are now getting even more complicated thanks to the concept of Internet of Things (IOT), where almost every device from cars to refrigerators will be able to “talk” to each other. IOT is already a thing, so to speak, and Governments and tech companies must address the issue of protecting IOT networks.
Some time ago, there was a report that a certain well-known spy agency has ditched its so-called “secure” e-mail system and gone back to typewriters, which are hard to find now. But the good old paper has a unique appeal that no computer screen can ever match. Perhaps we should reduce our dependence on computers where possible and enjoy the simpler pleasures of life without allowing intrusive IT systems to dictate our lives.
