A fatal system error, also known as a system crash, stop error, kernel error, or bug check, is when an operating system halts at the moment it reaches a condition where it cannot operate safely.

Fatal System Error (2010) is a nonfiction work written by Joseph Menn that tells a story of espionage that penetrates the network of international mobsters and hackers who use the Internet to extort money from businesses, steal from tens of millions of consumers, and attack government networks.