WhatsApp and Instagram Restored After Global Meta Outage

Meta-owned apps WhatsApp and Instagram have been fully restored after experiencing a widespread global outage on Wednesday, leaving millions of users unable to access or use the platforms. The disruption affected regions around the world, including the UK, parts of Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, and the US.

Key Details of the Outage:

• The outage began at around 18:00 GMT on Wednesday, with users across various regions reporting issues, such as being unable to use the apps or experiencing problems with feeds not refreshing.
• Over 22,000 Facebook users and 18,000 WhatsApp users reported issues on Downdetector.
• Meta acknowledged the technical issue, stating on X (formerly Twitter), "Thanks for bearing with us! We're 99% of the way there - just doing some last checks."

Meta’s Response:

Meta apologized for the inconvenience, confirming that the issue was being addressed. WhatsApp tweeted, "And we're back, happy chatting!" and Instagram followed with, "Andddd we're back - sorry for the wait, and thanks for bearing with us."

Previous Outages:

This outage is not Meta's first. The company previously faced a massive disruption in 2021, when Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp were down for nearly six hours. CEO Mark Zuckerberg later issued an apology for the incident.

Meta's Future Outlook:

Though the services have been largely restored, Meta has yet to confirm if all issues have been completely resolved. Despite the temporary disruption, Facebook remains one of the most widely used platforms worldwide, with over three billion active monthly users.