A faulty software update to an antivirus program operating on Microsoft Windows on Friday not only caused technology outages across the world, affecting companies and services from airlines and banks to TV channels and financial institutions, but also the proliferation of conspiracy theories on social media. The event illustrates the “volatile nature of the information ecosystem,” Rafi Mendelsohn, vice president at the disinformation security company Cyabra, told AFP.
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| Long queues at London Luton airport following major global IT crash on Friday 19 July, 2024. Photo: Reuters via bbc.com |
From fearmongering about a looming “World War III” to false narratives linking a cabal of global elite to a cyberattack, a torrent of online conspiracy theories took off Friday after a major IT crash.
Airlines, banks, TV channels and financial institutions were engulfed in turmoil after the crash, one of the biggest in recent years that was the result of a faulty software update to an antivirus program operating on Microsoft Windows.
The proliferation of internet-breaking conspiracy theories on social media platforms — many of which have removed guardrails that once contained the spread of misinformation — illustrates the new normal of information chaos after a major world event.
The outage gave way to a swirl of evidence-free posts on X, the Elon Musk-owned site formerly known as Twitter, that peddled an apocalyptic narrative: The world was under attack by a nefarious force.
france24.com
