🕒 Article read time: 2 minutes
How the Microsoft outage has affected logistics so far
A faulty software update by cyber security firm CrowdStrike led to severe disruptions across the global supply chain.
The logistics sector has been particularly hard hit with airports, ports and railways experiencing IT system problems, leading to delayed flights and disrupted freight schedules.
Logistics UK's Director of IT & Development, Nigel Smart said: "The issue was caused by a bad update to the widely used and respected CrowdStrike solution, which caused Windows-based terminals to crash with the infamous Microsoft ‘blue screen of death’.
"The implications of the Microsoft outage will have been widespread given that most airport, rail and seaport terminals are Microsoft based. The fix will be causing IT support teams huge issues as each terminal needs manual intervention to remove the offending file, and then restarting. The scale of this operation could be massive if it can’t be done remotely."
David Jinks, Head of Consumer Research at Parcelhero told Supply Chain 247: "Many airports, ports, railways, and retailers reported problems as a result of the IT outage.
“Delayed flights and issues with IT systems at airports will impact air freight. Not only will slots for dedicated airfreight flights be disrupted, but many international goods and packages are transported not only in specially designed cargo planes but also in the cargo holds of passenger aircraft.”
Sea ports around the world also reported IT issues, and delays are expected to affect the delivery timelines of international shipments, adding to a backlog of existing challenges in the shipping industry.
DHL Group reported that suppliers and business partners in some regions experienced very limited impact, while Kuehne+Nagel stated it was only indirectly impacted.
The outage highlights the vulnerability of the retail sector to IT disruptions and underscores the importance of robust cybersecurity measures.
"I had personal experience of holdups at Calais Eurotunnel which we assume were related," adds Logistics UK's Director of IT & Development, Nigel Smart. "Apparently, there was widespread disruption at the tunnel the day before (Saturday).
"These scenarios demonstrate how fully dependent we’ve become on computer/software solutions, which not only emphasises the need for tight change controls before releasing new software, but also better contingency plans to cope with instances like this.
"It’s also an indication of how disruptive a cyberattack could be on infrastructure and movement of goods."
Logistics UK will continue to monitor the situation closely and bring you any further developments.
Published On: 25/07/2024 13:27:12
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News In Brief
Port freight annual statistics 2023: Overview of port freight statistics and useful information
In 2023, all UK ports handled a total of 434.9 million tonnes, reaching the lowest levels seen since 2000.
Tonnage has declined 5% from 2022 and is down 10% since 2019, that is before the coronavirus pandemic.
Major ports account for the majority of all UK traffic, handling 425.9 million tonnes in 2023, compared to just nine million tonnes handled by minor ports.
Compared to 2022, major port traffic decreased by 5% in 2023, falling to below pandemic levels, despite some post-pandemic recovery seen in the last couple of years.
Minor port traffic declined by 3% in 2023 from 2022, reaching the lowest levels seen from 2000.
London accounted for 12% of all UK major port tonnage traffic handled in 2023 – this is the most of all UK ports and consistent with previous years.
This was closely followed by Grimsby and Immingham, which accounted for 11% of all tonnage traffic in 2023.
The top 10 seaports accounted for 69% of all cargo traffic at UK major ports in 2023.
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