A major computer outage struck the Netherlands on Wednesday, causing widespread disruption across various public services and grounding planes at Eindhoven Airport. The cause of the outage remains unknown, leaving authorities scrambling to restore normal operations.
Eindhoven Airport, located in the southeast of the country, was forced to halt all air traffic due to the network disruption. The airport typically serves passengers traveling to 30 international destinations. “Due to a network disruption, there is no air traffic possible at Eindhoven Airport. It is still unclear when the situation will be resolved,” the airport’s website stated.
While the country’s primary airport, Schiphol near Amsterdam, which serves as a major European hub, appeared to be functioning normally, the outage significantly impacted other public services. The Dutch coastguard announced it was “not reachable” by phone or radio due to the disruption, urging people in emergency situations to contact the 112 emergency number. The contact centre of the military police was also unavailable, according to authorities.
The outage also extended to healthcare services, making it impossible to schedule appointments for Covid vaccinations.
Last month, a similar widespread IT crash, attributed to an update to an antivirus program, caused chaos for airlines, banks, and media companies around the globe. The current outage raises concerns about the vulnerability of critical infrastructure to such disruptions, highlighting the need for robust cybersecurity measures.
As of now, authorities are working diligently to identify the cause of the outage and restore affected services. The impact of this disruption on both public and private sectors is significant and underscores the reliance on technology in modern society.
