New York Stock Exchange reopens after ‘technical issue’ halts ALL trading, just two hours after United was also forced to ground its flights after a ‘router fault’

• NYSE halted at 11:32am and only reopened at 3:10pm 
• Exchange says problem is an internal glitch and not result of cyberattack
• Believed software update carried out last night could be cause  
• White House claims there are ‘no signs of malicious activity’

By Sophie Jane Evans and Ashley Collman and Mark Prigg For Dailymail.

com

Published: 15:51 GMT, 8 July 2015 | Updated: 22:10 GMT, 8 July 2015

The New York Stock Exchange, United Airlines and the Wall Street Journal have all fallen victim to a series of massive technical glitches within hours of each other.

NYSE halted all trading for ‘technical reasons’ at 11:32am and only reopened at 3:10pm – but says the problem is an internal one and not the result of a cyberattack.

It comes as tens of thousands of United Airlines passengers were stranded at U.S. airports on Wednesday morning after all of the carrier’s flights were grounded nationwide due to a ‘router problem’

The Wall Street Journal was also left unable to publish for several hours after its systems came under attack.

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The Homeland Secretary Johnson said the problems were not related to ‘nefarious’ activity.

The White House confirmed that the President was briefed on the issues

‘At this point there in no indication of malicious actions,’ said spokesman Josh Earnest.

‘NYSE officials have been in contact with homeland security and SEC, and the President has asked to be kept updated.’

The security of federal systems was also addressed.

‘We work aggressively to make sure the defences we have in place reflect the threats we perceive, and that is continually evolving.

‘I can assure you that officials are very vigilant.’

Jane Lute of the Center for Internet Security, who previously worked as part of homeland security, told CNN ‘The episodes may not be related or malicious.

‘We would be looking for signs there are malicious elements here. We would tell people they need to follow good cyber hygiene.’

Computer security expert Graham Cluley warned against people blaming the issue on hackers.

‘My guess is that they turned a piece of equipment off and on again, and got things back to normal,’ he said.

‘Okay, so maybe it was a bit more complicated than that – but in my experience that’s the basic solution for most IT problems.

‘Similarly, the NYSE could be suffering from a technical glitch that has nothing to do with hoody-wearing hackers in the employ of the People’s Liberation Army.

‘Even if it was found that hackers were to blame, attributing an attack to a particular country is *notoriously* difficult. Stay safe folks, and don’t panic.’

The NY