On February 28, 2025, users around the globe faced significant disruptions as WhatsApp, the popular messaging application owned by Meta, encountered widespread outages. Reports poured in from users primarily located in Russia, but the service failures also reached users from countries including the United States, Italy, Germany, and Kazakhstan.
The outage became apparent around 18:00 local time, with many users expressing frustration through various social media platforms and websites dedicated to service interruptions. According to data compiled by Downdetector, complaints escalated rapidly, with over 8,000 reports of issues logged as users experienced difficulty sending messages and making calls. Most of the complaints originated from major urban centers like Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Krasnodar, with the Russia-specific site "Сбой.РФ" confirming over 1,500 individual complaints.
"Фиксируем глобальный сбой в работе сервиса Whatsapp. Сообщения о сбоях платформы поступают со всего мира, в том числе из США, Италии, Германии," was reported by the press service of Roskomnadzor (RKN), Russia's federal executive authority dealing with communications, information technology, and mass media. This clearly illustrated the global scale of the issue, reinforcing the mounting frustration among millions of users attempting to access the service.
Many users took to social media to vent their frustrations. Posts containing phrases like "WhatsApp not working today" surged as individuals sought clarity on the problem. Reports indicated difficulties with both message delivery and application functionality, leading to alarm among users who rely on the app for daily communication. The timeline of the service disruption began to emerge—initial complaints were noted shortly after 17:20 local time—with individuals reporting they were unable to access the app at all.
Meanwhile, additional Telegram channels highlighted similar service interruptions affecting other applications and services within the Russian internet space, such as banks and public service portals. This information created speculation as to whether the WhatsApp issue was part of broader internet connectivity problems or isolated to the app itself.
According to the latest figures leading up to the publication of this report, users primarily reported challenges around message sending and app loading failures, leading some to take to alternative platforms to communicate. Users reported not only messages being delayed but also faced issues initiating calls. Navigational difficulties within the app led many to question whether the problem was related to server overload or technical malfunction on part of the application.
By around the mid-afternoon, WhatsApp's failure was causing ripples through social media, driving searches on the internet concerning the outages exponentially higher. Individuals sought news and updates on the app, with many feeling somewhat disconnected from their daily communication networks. These incidents are not entirely novel; similar outages had occurred previously, affecting the app users during moments of increased traffic or other global systems interventions.
Further analysis around these disruptions may also lead to scrutiny of Meta’s operational robustness, especially under significant user load. With growing dependence on WhatsApp for personal and operational communications, such outages can lead to serious repercussions depending on their duration and resolve time. Users were left pondering whether the issue was temporary or indicative of more severe underlying problems with the app's infrastructure.
Reports remained fluid throughout the afternoon, with many users continuing to seek updates from both WhatsApp’s official communications channels and from media outlets. The overwhelming feedback and flagged complaints from around the world raised questions about the reliability of one of the most used messaging services globally. Officials from various affected countries – including Russia – kept their public communications open, advising users to remain patient as IT teams worked to determine the root cause and timeline for resolution.
While there were no immediate updates on the exact cause behind this outage, the swift responses from monitoring bodies indicated the seriousness with which such incidents are regarded, especially with geopolitical and logistical contexts also at play during the communications disruptions experienced by millions. Users were warned to look out for updates on the status of services across multiple platforms as teams worked diligently behind the scenes to restore functionality at the earliest.
Although it's unclear when WhatsApp will fully restore its operations, affected users and monitoring bodies alike will be watching closely. For now, the priority remains on resolving the outages affecting millions. The experience is yet another reminder of the fragile web connecting digital communities around the world, and how quickly those connections can fray when issues arise.