Microsoft Plans Windows Security Overhaul After CrowdStrike Outage

Microsoft is stepping up its plans to make Windows more resilient to buggy software [non-paywalled source] after a botched CrowdStrike update took down millions of PCs and servers in a global IT outage. Financial Times: The tech giant has in the past month intensified talks with partners about adapting the security procedures around its operating system to better withstand the kind of software error that crashed 8.5mn Windows devices on July 19. Critics say that any changes by Microsoft would amount to a concession of shortcomings in Windows’ handling of third-party security software that could have been addressed sooner.

Yet they would also prove controversial among security vendors that would have to make radical changes to their products, and force many Microsoft customers to adapt their software. Last month’s outages — which are estimated to have caused billions of dollars in damages after grounding thousands of flights and disrupting hospital appointments worldwide — heightened scrutiny from regulators and business leaders over the extent of access that third-party software vendors have to the core, or kernel, of Windows operating systems. Microsoft will host a summit next month for government representatives and cyber security companies, including CrowdStrike, to discuss “improving resiliency and protecting mutual customers’ critical infrastructure,” Microsoft said on Friday.