WhatsApp says it has fixed an issue that caused a major outage worldwide, lasting from around 3AM to 5AM ET

WhatsApp went down in a major outage affecting the communications app for two hours today. The service started experiencing issues at around 3AM ET, with users greeted with a “connecting” message.

The Verge 2022-10-25 Tom Warren

Context & Ripple Effects

This was not an isolated disruption: WhatsApp had already restored service after another two-hour outage in 2017, while related coverage in 2021 documented how outages hit especially hard in India, Brazil, Lebanon, and other markets where the app is central to everyday communication. The recurrence matters because a short interruption can remove a primary communications channel for users at once.

First-order effects

WhatsApp users worldwide were unable to exchange messages during the roughly two-hour disruption before the service was restored.
The outage immediately interrupted the communications routines of users in markets highlighted by earlier coverage as particularly dependent on WhatsApp.

Second-order effects

Repeated outages give WhatsApp users and organizations that rely on the app a practical reason to maintain alternate channels, rather than treating the service as continuously available.
A later global messaging outage affecting WhatsApp reinforces that service continuity, not only features, is a recurring competitive requirement for Meta's communications products.

Third-order effects

If outages continue to recur, messaging services’ value will be judged increasingly on resilience and users’ ability to shift conversations across channels when a single platform fails.

The trend: Global messaging is becoming essential communications infrastructure, making reliability failures more consequential in markets where a single app anchors daily coordination.

Discussion

@punjabiii_munda Bella Ciao on x
People Coming to Twitter to see if WhatsApp is down #WhatsappDown https://twitter.com/...
@imamandubey @imamandubey on x
When WhatsApp is Down. #whatsappdown https://twitter.com/...
@netblocks @netblocks on x
ℹ️ Note: Messaging app WhatsApp is currently experiencing international outages; incident not related to country-level internet disruptions or filtering #WhatsAppDown https://twitter.com/...
@gingerpower_ Jamie on x
When your WhatsApp is playing up but you come to Twitter and see that everyone else is having the same problem #WhatsAppDown https://twitter.com/...
@lisafleisher Lisa Fleisher on x
With so much business conducted on WhatsApp, this actually has an impact https://www.bloomberg.com/...
@gossithedog Kevin Beaumont on x
WhatsApp being down is upstaging the new PM, lols https://twitter.com/...
@jessicaelgot Jessica Elgot on x
Nothing will do more for Tory party unity than WhatsApp being down
@tomwarren Tom Warren on x
WhatsApp is down in a major outage affecting the communications app. Users worldwide are being greeted with a “connecting” message https://www.theverge.com/...
@lewis_goodall Lewis Goodall on x
WhatsApp is down. Really annoying. Also completely glorious.
@tomwarren Tom Warren on x
WhatsApp (Meta) says “we're aware that some people are currently having trouble sending messages and we're working to restore WhatsApp for everyone as quickly as possible.” https://www.theverge.com/...
@belikeshane @belikeshane on x
You came here to see if Whatsapp is down right? https://twitter.com/...
@glcarlstrom Gregg Carlstrom on x
That giant screeching sound you hear is the entire Middle East grinding to a halt because WhatsApp seems to be down
@mrboboskie Seun Akinsanya on x
WhatsApp down again 🙊 https://twitter.com/...
@jayminsofficial Jaymin Shah on x
Downdetector, a popular website that tracks outages across websites and applications has reported a massive spike with over 30,000 reports about WhatsApp being down. #WhatsAppDown #WhatsApp @Meta https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
@ksi @ksi on x
I think WhatsApp is down. I've now realised how much I rely on WhatsApp lmao
@edjeff Ed Jefferson on x
whatsapp crashed under the weight of local neighbourhood watch groups debating whether people letting off fireworks should merely be sentenced to life or executed
@akreana_ @akreana_ on x
So we're all on Twitter to see if WhatsApp is down ?
@realmadriden @realmadriden on x
When you come to @Twitter and realise that, yes, WhatsApp is down... https://twitter.com/...
@oliviasolon Olivia Solon on x
Doesn't seem to be just WhatsApp https://twitter.com/... https://twitter.com/...
@paoloardoino @paoloardoino on x
WhatsApp is down globally. https://keet.io/ doesn't have servers. All connections happen directly between peer devices. Full privacy. In fact the biggest lie is that people need cloud/centralized infrastructure to talk to friends and family. Be a 🍐 https://www.cnbc.com/...
@primevideoin @primevideoin on x
whatsapp is down but no one texts you https://twitter.com/...
@newley Newley Purnell on x
Update: #WhatsApp is back. “We know people had trouble sending messages on WhatsApp today,” a WhatsApp spokeswoman said. “We've fixed the issue and apologize for any inconvenience.” She didn't immediately respond to a question about what caused the outage. https://twitter.com/...
@vodkatweetz @vodkatweetz on x
Me apologising to my wifi after finding out WhatsApp is down #whatsappdown https://twitter.com/...

Chronicles