Microsoft-CrowdStrike Memes Celebrate ‘Happy International Blue Screen Day’
We laugh because we must not cry. Realistically, there’s nothing funny about the massive global IT outage suffered by Microsoft on Friday morning. Flights, banks, 911 call centers, and hospitals were among those affected as the outage hit thousands of Windows PCs. But we laugh because we must not cry. Memes and jokes about the issue began almost instantly. Here are some of our favorites.
What Happened?
Friday’s (2024-07-19) worldwide outage was caused by a technical problem that global cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike said it had identified in its software and was working to resolve. CrowdStrike provides antivirus software to Microsoft for its Windows devices. In response to the chaos, Microsoft quickly addressed the issue, stating that their “previously impacted Microsoft 365 apps and services have recovered.” However, some users were still encountering the dreaded “blue screen of death” (BSOD).
How to Fix It
If you’re still seeing the BSOD, Microsoft suggests restoring your Windows 365 Cloud PC to a state before the faulty update or replacing the buggy version with the system in use just before the update. Instructions on how to do this can be found on their support page, giving users various restart points ranging from four to 24 hours before the problematic update.
Here are areas often affected by IT outages:
1. Financial Services ( Bank )
2. Healthcare
3. Telecommunications
4. Government Services
5. Retail and E-commerce
6. Transportation and Logistics ( Airport )
7. Manufacturing
8. Education
9. Energy and Utilities
10. Media and Entertainment
Fun Facts: Happy International Blue Screen Day!
One Twitter user dubbed the day International BlueScreen Day, as many computers showed the famed Microsoft Blue Screen of Death. How do you celebrate?
Find Someone to Blame!
It’d be nice to pin this mistake on one hapless IT worker, wouldn’t it? One Threads post humorously wrote, “So excited by new internship at Microsoft. I tripped on a couple of cables this morning but I think I put them back right.”
And another (fake, we hope) account pretended to be the CrowdStrike employee who brought down the whole world. It reads, “First day at CrowdStrike, pushed a little update and taking the afternoon off.”
Sad Times for the Sphere
The famed Vegas Sphere entertainment venue was also a subject of some outage jokes, including an image of the entire sphere showing the Blue Screen of Death.
The Suez Canal Remembered
Remember the debacle when the Ever Given got stuck in the Suez Canal? One BlueSky user does, posting, “A line of code has gotten itself stuck in the Suez Canal.”
Why is MY Computer Working?
Some workers who thought the outage would give them a break from the daily grind found out that wasn’t the case. Many social media posts echoed this X user, who wrote, “Actively furious that the global Microsoft outage doesn’t seem to have affected my workplace.”
Not all Microsoft programs were affected. Max Pollard on X wrote, “Microsoft outage but Teams and Outlook are both fine is the adult version of snow that doesn’t settle enough for a school closure.”
Another tweet suggested, “Whoever’s responsible for the Microsoft outage is getting fired anyway, so the smart thing to do would be knock Teams out for the day too and leave a hero.”
All You Need to Know about CrowdStrike Blue Screen
Stay safe out there and remember to keep your sense of humor! Happy International Blue Screen Day!
