On July 30, Microsoft experienced another service outage, primarily affecting its cloud services Azure and Microsoft 365.

According to Downdetector's report, issues began to increase shortly after 7 a.m. Eastern Time, with hundreds of complaints during peak times. Microsoft stated that it has mobilized multiple engineering teams for diagnostics and resolution, and the issue shows signs of improvement.

The outage was related to a software update from CrowdStrike (CRWD), an American cybersecurity company. The service disruption caused multiple Windows systems to experience "blue screen of death," rendering Microsoft 365 services inaccessible to users worldwide. A few weeks ago, a software update fault from CrowdStrike had caused a crash in Microsoft's systems, affecting over 8 million computers globally, and the issue has recurred.

The disruption affected several services dependent on Microsoft's platform, including the website services of Cambridge Water, online services for UK courts and tribunals, as well as ticketing websites and club applications for Dutch football club FC Twente.

Computer security expert Alan Woodward noted that this outage exposed the vulnerability of Microsoft's cloud infrastructure and recommended avoiding single points of failure and enhancing defensive capabilities.

Following the outage, Microsoft's stock price dropped more than 2%, closing the day down 0.89% at $422.92 per share. Subsequently, due to news of slowing growth in Azure cloud services, its after-hours stock price briefly plunged by over 6%.