Beijing, China – Following Friday’s incident involving CrowdStrike, a cybersecurity company, the impact on China was minimal, primarily affecting foreign companies operating in the country. Gao Feng, a senior research director at Gartner, explained that the limited impact was due to the fact that local Chinese companies do not heavily rely on CrowdStrike products, which are more commonly used in Europe and the United States.
Despite the global IT outage, various internet-connected systems in China, including ride-hailing and e-commerce platforms, continued to operate smoothly on Friday. Chinese state media also reported that international flights at Beijing’s airports were unaffected, highlighting that major airlines like Air China, China Eastern Airlines, and China Southern Airlines did not experience significant technical system failures.
One notable consequence of the IT outage in China was the disruption caused to Microsoft Windows devices trying to integrate an update of CrowdStrike’s Falcon product. This led to a series of computer restarts and the infamous “blue screen of death.” Microsoft products, widely used in China, account for a significant share of personal computer shipments in the country, showing a higher usage rate compared to the rest of the world.
While the IT outage initially sparked discussions on social media platforms in China, including a trending hashtag thanking Microsoft, the focus soon shifted to other domestic news, such as Xiaomi’s product launch in Beijing. The popularity of the hashtag quickly waned in favor of more local topics, indicating a relatively limited long-term impact on Chinese online users.
In recent years, both the U.S. and Chinese governments have advocated for the use of domestic technology and local data storage out of national security concerns. While Windows continues to dominate the personal computer market in China, there is growing adoption of China-made operating systems like UOS (Unity Operating System) among state-owned enterprises and government sectors.
Overall, experts suggest that the minimal impact in China following the CrowdStrike incident can be attributed to the limited use of the company’s products in the country. Chinese companies tend to rely on other cybersecurity solutions, such as those offered by Tencent and 360, due to the specific security threats they face. CrowdStrike’s latest cyber threat report reinforces the continuous operation of “China-nexus adversaries” on a global scale, emphasizing the importance of tailored cybersecurity measures in different regions.