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WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook go down, millions report issues in global outage

A display of WhatsApp logo. (AFP/File)

By Amina Wako | Wednesday, April 3, 2024

WhatsApp acknowledged the problem and assured users that they were actively working on resolving it.

Social media giants Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp, all owned by Meta, experienced a worldwide outage on Wednesday afternoon, disrupting the digital lives of millions of users.

The outage left individuals disconnected from friends, family, memes, and the latest updates from their favourite influencers.

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Users reported being unable to send or receive messages on the platforms, prompting widespread frustration and confusion.

Many turned to alternative platforms, with Elon Musk's X becoming a popular destination for those seeking reassurance that they were not alone in facing connectivity issues.

In response to the outage, WhatsApp acknowledged the problem and assured users that they were actively working on resolving it.

"We know some people are experiencing issues right now, we're working on getting things back to 100% for everyone as quickly as possible," it said.

This is not the first time Meta-owned platforms have experienced such a disruption. Just last month, users encountered similar issues, with reports of being unexpectedly logged out of their accounts. That outage, which affected Instagram, Facebook, and Threads, lasted approximately two hours.

WhatsApp, in particular, has faced occasional downtime, with the last significant outage occurring in 2022, disrupting service for approximately two hours.