Following a widespread technology outage that caused communication issues across the nation this morning, Friday, July 19, emergency services in Carroll, Clinton and Boone counties have confirmed that while the communication systems are down for most of the agencies, 911 is still operable.
According to cybersecurity experts, the issue has not been linked to a security incident or a cyberattack, and a fix is being developed throughout the day today. The experts stated that a problem occurred when a faulty update was deployed to computers running Microsoft Windows.
The issue reportedly affect Microsoft 365 apps and services, which escalated to internet outages across the nation that have affected large banks, corporations, airlines, law enforcement offices and more, including the first responding agencies in Carroll, Clinton and Boone County.
The Delphi Fire Department released a statement regarding the situation, stating “aside from 911, all phone lines into Carroll County 911 are down,” which includes non-emergency calls. Similar reports have been received from Clinton and Boone counties from agencies and community members.
According to Microsoft 365, the company stated that the fixes are currently seeing a positive trend in service availability, but local agencies have not released an estimated time of restoration for the phone lines at this time.