Wednesday Evening Outage
Users of Meta’s Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp were globally shut out due to a reported “technical issue.” The outage left millions frustrated, with many turning to X (formerly Twitter) to voice their complaints and seek updates.
Downdetector Insights
Downdetector recorded massive spikes in outage reports:
- Instagram: Over 70,000 reports above the usual activity.
- Facebook: Surpassed 100,000 reports.
Meta’s Statement
Meta acknowledged the disruption on X, stating:
“We’re aware that a technical issue is impacting some users’ ability to access our apps. We’re working to get things back to normal as quickly as possible and apologize for any inconvenience.”
Patterns of Past Outages
Similar outages occurred in May 2024 and October 2021. Both incidents were attributed to technical faults rather than security breaches.
Impact on Users
- Facebook users faced login issues despite using correct credentials.
- Instagram users experienced frozen feeds with no updates.
Meta’s Reach
- Facebook: 3 billion monthly active users, the world’s largest social media platform.
- Instagram: 1.35 billion users worldwide.
Social Media Shift During Outage
X saw increased activity as users reported problems and sought updates.
Nigerian Perspective
- Nigeria boasts about 33 million active social media users.
- Platform usage stats:
- WhatsApp: Most popular with over 90 million users.
- Facebook: Used by 86.2% of Nigerian social media users.
- Instagram: 73.1% penetration.
- X: 61.4% penetration.
Meta is working to resolve the issue promptly, but the widespread disruption underscores the centrality of these platforms in global communication and social interaction.
