A massive Microsoft outage has disrupted services in at least 74 countries since it was first detected after midday US Eastern Time (17:00 GMT) on Thursday. The issue has affected Microsoft 365 Services, including Teams, Outlook, and the AI software Copilot, causing widespread connectivity problems.
In the US, staff with the House of Representatives reported halted work due to the outage, with one describing Outlook as their "life" and "Bible." Tech giants OpenAI and Anthropic also faced issues, with OpenAI investigating problems affecting its connections to Microsoft's services. Courts across the US warned of delayed communications, and the electric truck maker Workhorse Group rescheduled its third-quarter results due to business disruptions.
In Asia, Japan saw companies reverting to fax machines for communications, while Singapore and the Philippines reported disruptions in government systems and courts. In India, equity market professionals panicked when they couldn't access daily research reports. China, despite using local software like WPS Office, also faced frustration due to the outage.
Australia's spy and federal police agencies were affected, though officials downplayed the impact. In Europe, Euronext advised listed companies to use the phone for communications, and UK services like GPs, police, and pharmacies reported disruptions. Some parts of Asia, Europe, and Africa remained unaffected, possibly due to under-reporting or the use of domestic alternatives like in Russia.