Windows NTP Time Service Sends Wrong Time to Users Worldwide

[CrAKeN]

 

A mysterious issue is affecting the default Windows NTP server (time.windows.com), according to multiple complaints coming from Reddit and Twitter users, screwing up everyone's computer clocks.

 

Based on reports, the time.windows.com NTP server is sending Windows users the incorrect time, sometimes off by seconds, but in other cases, off even by hours. The issue was spotted today, April 3, early in the morning, and is ongoing for at least 10 hours.

 

The impact was felt immediately by servers that rely on the Windows NTP service to schedule and execute tasks. Unhappy admins found their servers launching routines early or too late, botching scripts and crashing their applications.

 

Home users were affected as well but to a lesser degree. Most users probably didn't even notice. Based on Twitter activity, most affected users are located in Asia.

 

Microsoft did not respond to a request for details in time for this article's publication.

 

How to change NTP servers

Until the issue is cleared up, users that rely on the accurate time values can change their computer's NTP server. They can do this by following these steps:

 

Step 1: Press the Start button and type "Date and Time" in the search field.
Step 2: Open the control panel listing.
     Step 2.5: For Windows 10 users, if you chose the "Date and time" settings option, choose the "Additional date, time, & regional settings" option, which will bring up another window where you have to click "Set the time and date" option.
Step 3: In the popup floating window that appears, select the "Internet Time" tab.
Step 4: Here, click "Change settings..."
Step 5: Enter a new NTP server. This can be "time.nist.gov" or "ntp.pool.org"

 

UPDATE: A Microsoft representative acknowledged the issue. "We investigated and quickly resolved the issue our time service experienced," the Microsoft spokesperson wrote in an email. Tests carried out by Bleeping Computer confirmed the Windows NTP serrvice is up and running at the time of this update.

 

Source

[SoftChip]

In Canada, time.nrc.ca is the official time server, also I use ca.pool.ntp.org in devices like routers.