BUSINESS

Microsoft says taking 'mitigation actions' after service issues

Agence France-Presse · Jul 19, 2024, 3:46 PM

(FILES) People walk past a Microsoft Experience Center on Fifth Avenue on 3 April 2024 in New York City. A Cyber Safety Review Board, created in 2021 by executive order and led by Homeland Security, released a report that detailed lapses by Microsoft that led to a targeted Chinese hack last year of top U.S. government officials’ email that included the email of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. — Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images/AFP

US tech giant Microsoft said Friday it was taking "mitigation actions" after service disruptions.

"Our services are still seeing continuous improvements while we continue to take mitigation actions," the company said in a post on social media platform X.

In a notice titled "Service Degradation", Microsoft said users "may be unable to access various Microsoft 365 apps and services".

The announcement came as Australia reported a large-scale outage of IT systems on Friday, with the country's national broadcaster, its largest international airport and a major telecommunications company reporting issues.

Australia's National Cyber Security Coordinator said the "large-scale technical outage" was caused by an issue with a "third-party software platform".

Microsoft said access was limited as some users were only able to access Microsoft 365 in read-only mode while it works to fix the problem.

"We remain committed in treating this event with the highest priority and urgency while we continue to address the lingering impact for the remaining Microsoft 365 apps that are in a degraded state," it said.