Instagram and WhatsApp are now back online after a global outage affected Meta-owned apps on Wednesday. Over 22,000 people reported Facebook issues, and more than 18,000 experienced problems with WhatsApp, according to Downdetector. Users in the UK, parts of Europe, Asia, Australia, South America, and the US reported issues.
Meta has not confirmed if all problems are fully resolved. The company addressed users via X, stating, “Thanks for bearing with us! We’re 99% of the way there – just doing some last checks. We apologize to those who’ve been affected by the outage.”
Outage Details and User Impact
The outages began around 18:00 GMT on Wednesday, according to Downdetector. The platform tracks outages based on user reports, but the total number of affected users may be higher. Problems included being unable to use the apps or seeing unresponsive feeds.
Soon after the outage started, Meta acknowledged a “technical issue” affecting users’ access to its apps. The company promised to resolve the problem as quickly as possible. WhatsApp announced, “We’re aware of some issues accessing WhatsApp. We’re actively working on a solution and starting to see a return to normal for most people. We expect things to be back to normal shortly.”
WhatsApp later posted on X, “And we’re back, happy chatting!” Instagram echoed the sentiment, saying, “Andddd we’re back – sorry for the wait, and thanks for bearing with us.”
Previous Outages and Meta’s Response
Meta’s platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, are some of the most widely used apps globally. Facebook alone has over three billion active monthly users. Outages of this scale are not new for Meta. In 2021, the company experienced a major disruption affecting Facebook, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram. That outage lasted almost six hours, prompting an apology from Meta’s founder, Mark Zuckerberg.
While this latest outage was shorter, it still caused significant frustration among users worldwide. Meta’s timely communication and updates helped reassure users as services gradually returned to normal.
