(Photo by Vera Victoria)
Banking and health services have also been affected, as well as some broadcasting or media outlets.
According to global cyber-security firm Crowdstrike, the issue stemmed from an update of its software designed to protect Microsoft Windows devices from hacking.
Microsoft has announced that it is taking steps to prevent the severe effects of this incident from escalating further worldwide.
Crowdstrike's leader George Kurtz explained that the problem was due to a defect in a "content update" for Microsoft Windows devices.
"The issue has been identified, isolated, and a fix has been deployed," Kurtz stated.
Kurtz also affirmed that these issues have not affected other operating systems.
"This is not a security incident or cyber-attack," he emphasized.
Kurtz's statement follows circulating news that Crowdstrike, a manufacturer of antivirus software, issued a software update which caused Windows devices to crash.
Crowdstrike's shares fell by as much as 21% in pre-market trade, as did Microsoft's.
Stocks in travel and leisure were also impacted.w
