| Recurring |
one_organization |
(a) The software failure incident related to the NHS Covid-19 app suffering a 'blue screen' glitch has happened again within the same organization. Users reported being stuck at a blue loading screen with the app's logo, and the NHS published a workaround for the problem without specifying the cause or fix timeline. The Department of Health and Social Care acknowledged the issue and provided steps for iPhone users to resolve it, indicating that the problem persisted within the NHS app [107689].
(b) The software failure incident related to the NHS Covid-19 app experiencing a 'blue screen' glitch has not been reported to have occurred at other organizations using the same underlying technology provided by Apple and Google for contact tracing. Apple mentioned that it had not seen the issue arise in other countries' apps, suggesting that the specific glitch was not widespread across different nations utilizing the same technology [107689]. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design, operation |
(a) The software failure incident in the NHS Covid-19 app can be attributed to the design phase. Users reported being stuck at a blue loading screen with the app's logo, indicating a glitch in the app's launch process. The NHS has not specified the exact cause of the problem or when it will be fixed, suggesting a potential issue introduced during system development or updates [107689].
(b) The software failure incident can also be linked to the operation phase. Some users were able to resolve the issue by force-quitting the app and relaunching it, indicating that the problem could be related to the operation or misuse of the app by users. Additionally, the Department of Health and Social Care mentioned that the app is still scanning even if the screen appears blue, highlighting an operational aspect of the failure [107689]. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system |
(a) within_system: The software failure incident with the NHS Covid-19 app experiencing a 'blue screen' glitch seems to be primarily within the system. Users reported being stuck at a blue loading screen with the app's logo, indicating an issue within the app itself [107689]. The NHS provided a workaround for the problem in its help files, suggesting steps like resetting iPhone's location and privacy settings, force-quitting the app, and reinstalling the app to address the issue, all of which are related to the app's internal functioning [107689]. The Department of Health and Social Care mentioned that the app is still scanning even if the screen appears blue, indicating that the core functionality of the app is still operational despite the visual glitch [107689].
(b) outside_system: There is no explicit mention in the article about contributing factors originating from outside the system that led to the software failure incident. The focus of the reported incident is on the app itself, user experiences, workarounds, and ongoing efforts to identify the cause within the app's functioning [107689]. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident in the NHS Covid-19 app was not attributed to human actions but rather to a glitch or fault in the app itself. Users reported being stuck at a blue loading screen with the app's logo, indicating a technical issue within the app [Article 107689].
(b) The article does not provide any information suggesting that the software failure incident was due to contributing factors introduced by human actions. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
software |
(a) The software failure incident related to hardware:
- The article mentions that Apple does not believe the problem is at its end, indicating that the issue is not originating from Apple's hardware [107689].
(b) The software failure incident related to software:
- The article highlights that the NHS Covid-19 app has stopped working for many iPhone owners, indicating a software-related issue [107689].
- Users reported being stuck at a blue loading screen with the contact-tracing app's logo, suggesting a software glitch [107689].
- The NHS has published a workaround for the problem in its help files but has not specified the cause of the problem, indicating a software-related issue [107689].
- Some users fixed the problem by force-quitting the app, which is a software-related action [107689]. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
non-malicious |
(a) The software failure incident described in Article 107689 does not indicate any malicious intent behind the issue. Users reported being stuck at a blue loading screen with the contact-tracing app's logo, and the NHS provided a workaround for the problem without attributing it to any intentional harm. The Department of Health and Social Care mentioned that the app is still scanning even if the screen appears blue, indicating that the failure was not caused by malicious actions [107689].
(b) The software failure incident appears to be non-malicious, as there is no indication in the article of any intentional harm or malicious activity causing the issue. The focus is on technical troubleshooting and workarounds to address the problem, with users being advised to reset their iPhone's location and privacy settings or force-quit the app to resolve the issue [107689]. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
unknown |
(a) The software failure incident related to the NHS Covid-19 app suffering a 'blue screen' glitch does not provide specific information about poor decisions contributing to the failure. The article mentions that the cause of the problem remains unclear, and the NHS has not disclosed what caused the issue or when it will be fixed. Users have reported being stuck at a blue loading screen with the app's logo, and the NHS has provided workarounds for users to try to resolve the issue. The Department of Health and Social Care stated that the app is still scanning even if the screen appears blue, and steps have been outlined on the app's website to address the problem. However, there is no direct mention of poor decisions leading to the software failure incident [107689].
(b) The software failure incident related to the NHS Covid-19 app suffering a 'blue screen' glitch does not provide specific information about accidental decisions contributing to the failure. The article mentions that users have reported being stuck at a blue loading screen with the app's logo, and the NHS has provided workarounds for users to try to resolve the issue. Some users have deleted and reinstalled the app to fix the fault, while others have fixed the problem by force-quitting the app and relaunching it. The Department of Health and Social Care stated that the app is still scanning even if the screen appears blue, and steps have been outlined on the app's website to address the problem. However, there is no direct mention of accidental decisions leading to the software failure incident [107689]. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
accidental |
(a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is not explicitly mentioned in the article. The cause of the problem with the NHS Covid-19 app, which resulted in a blue loading screen and users being unable to launch the app, is not specified as being due to a lack of professional competence by humans or the development organization.
(b) The software failure incident appears to be accidental as there is no indication in the article that the issue was intentionally introduced. Users reported being stuck at a blue loading screen with the app's logo, and the NHS provided a workaround for the problem without specifying the exact cause. Apple also mentioned that it did not believe the problem was at its end, indicating that the issue was not deliberately caused by them. |
| Duration |
temporary |
(a) The software failure incident described in the article is temporary. Users reported being stuck at a blue loading screen with the contact-tracing app's logo, indicating a temporary issue with launching the app [107689]. The NHS provided a workaround for the problem in its help files, suggesting steps for users to resolve the issue, which implies that the failure is not permanent. Additionally, some users were able to fix the problem by force-quitting the app and then re-launching it, further indicating a temporary nature of the issue. |
| Behaviour |
crash, other |
(a) crash: The software failure incident described in the article is related to a crash. Users reported the NHS Covid-19 app getting "stuck" at the logo screen when launched, with nothing else happening, indicating a failure due to the system losing state and not performing any of its intended functions [107689].
(b) omission: The article does not mention any specific instances of the system omitting to perform its intended functions at an instance(s).
(c) timing: The article does not mention any issues related to the system performing its intended functions correctly, but too late or too early.
(d) value: The article does not mention any issues related to the system performing its intended functions incorrectly.
(e) byzantine: The article does not mention any issues related to the system behaving erroneously with inconsistent responses and interactions.
(f) other: The other behavior observed in this software failure incident is that some users were able to fix the problem by force-quitting the app and then re-launching it, indicating a workaround for the crash issue [107689]. |