On December 11, 2024, all of Meta’s platforms, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Threads, experienced a significant global outage. This has disrupted services for millions of users. The issues began around 6 PM GMT when users reported that they were facing difficulties when accessing the apps, posting content, and sending messages.
According to Downdetector, over 180,000 users reported issues across Meta’s platforms during the peak of the outage. Facebook saw over 105,000 reports, Instagram had over 66,000, and WhatsApp experienced more than 10,000 user-reported problems. This outage affected people from all over the world.
Meta acknowledged the technical issues on X (formerly Twitter), 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.” 
By approximately 12 PM, services began recovering, and Instagram confirmed that they were back online. 
This incident follows outages from earlier in the year. As reported on CNBC, a significant service disruption in March 2024 affected Meta’s platforms globally. 
While Meta has not provided us with any detailed information on what caused this outage, incidents like this highlight the vulnerabilities in centralised social media platforms. Users are advised to stay informed through multiple channels and consider alternative communication methods to mitigate the impact of future disruptions.
Following Meta’s official channels on platforms like X for real-time updates during such outages can provide timely information. Also, instead of relying entirely on communication through platforms owned by a single company, branching out to other decentralised platforms like Bluesky and Mastodon might help with uninterrupted communication.