Paris — A massive internet outage struck Amazon Web Services (AWS) on Monday, knocking out access to some of the world’s biggest online platforms — from Amazon Prime and Fortnite to Snapchat, Reddit, and even airline systems.
Amazon confirmed that the disruption originated within its US-East-1 region, a critical data hub located in northern Virginia, and caused “increased error rates” across multiple services. Engineers have been working urgently to restore normal operations.
According to Downdetector, a website that tracks online service outages, the AWS issue quickly spiraled into a global internet disruption, affecting a wide range of apps and websites, including Alexa, Perplexity AI, Duolingo, Hulu, Disney+, Signal, and Delta Air Lines.
In Europe, users also reported problems accessing WhatsApp, Tinder, UK banks, and even several mobile phone networks.
Widespread Impact
Reports began surfacing early Monday morning, with AWS posting its first maintenance notice at 07:11 GMT, acknowledging system disruptions.
Roughly two hours later, Amazon said it was starting to see “significant signs of recovery”, though some platforms remained partially down or unstable.
The outage once again highlighted just how dependent the internet has become on a few large cloud infrastructure providers — particularly AWS, which powers a huge portion of the world’s websites, mobile apps, and enterprise systems.
What Caused It?
While Amazon hasn’t provided detailed technical information yet, the company’s early updates point to a failure in one of its core infrastructure zones, the US-East-1 region.
This specific region has a history of triggering global disruptions, since it hosts major back-end systems for hundreds of companies.
In past outages, similar incidents have been caused by network configuration errors or software deployment bugs that cascade through dependent services — a ripple effect that can take hours to stabilize.
Platforms Affected
Among the high-profile casualties were:
- Amazon Prime Video, where users reported long loading times and playback errors.
- Fortnite, whose servers went offline for millions of players.
- Perplexity AI, which stopped responding entirely.
- Snapchat, Reddit, Hulu, Disney+, Duolingo, and Signal, which all faced connection issues.
Airlines weren’t spared either — Delta Air Lines reported disruptions in flight operations software, though no major delays were immediately confirmed.
Meanwhile, some UK banks and telecom services also saw temporary outages, highlighting just how interconnected these systems are through Amazon’s cloud.
Early Recovery Signs
By mid-morning, some users noticed partial restoration of services. AWS said its teams were rerouting traffic and rebalancing workloads to minimize the impact while full repairs continued.
Despite improvements, the incident served as a wake-up call for many organizations about the risks of centralized infrastructure dependence — when one major node falters, the digital world feels it instantly.
A Reminder of Cloud Vulnerabilities
This isn’t the first time AWS has gone down.
- In December 2021, an outage in the same US-East-1 region disrupted Netflix, Amazon’s own delivery systems, and several government services.
- In June 2023, a smaller but similar glitch briefly knocked out Slack, Shopify, and McDonald’s ordering systems.
Each time, the cause was traced back to a single regional fault — underscoring the fragility of even the most sophisticated cloud systems.
The Bigger Picture
Amazon Web Services hosts more than 30% of the global cloud computing market, serving millions of websites, companies, and government agencies.
That means when AWS hiccups, the internet itself shudders — impacting entertainment, communications, finance, and even public services.
Today’s outage also comes at a time when companies worldwide are investing heavily in AI infrastructure, much of which runs on AWS servers. Any prolonged downtime could have ripple effects on AI platforms, cloud startups, and enterprise tools that rely on Amazon’s backbone.
Amazon’s Official Response
In its most recent update, AWS said engineers have “identified the root cause of the issue and are working toward full recovery.”
The company thanked users for their patience and said it is continuing to monitor affected systems closely to prevent further disruption.
As of the latest reports, most major services were gradually coming back online, though some users continued to experience intermittent issues with login, streaming, and data syncing.
Conclusion
For now, the world’s digital infrastructure appears to be stabilizing — but this global outage is a stark reminder of how a single fault line in one data center can ripple across continents, halting entertainment, communication, and business in an instant.
As cloud systems grow larger and more complex, experts say ensuring redundancy and decentralization will be key to avoiding similar digital blackouts in the future.
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