On October 14, 2024, Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, experienced a significant outage that affected thousands of users across the United States. According to Downdetector, a website that tracks service disruptions, the outage began around 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time and saw over 12,000 reports of issues with Facebook and more than 5,000 with Instagram. Users reported problems with logging in, accessing feeds, and other services.

The disruption lasted approximately 90 minutes before Meta managed to restore services for most users. Despite the quick resolution, the outage raised concerns about the reliability of Meta's platforms, especially given the frequency of such incidents. Earlier this year, a similar outage affected hundreds of thousands of users globally.

During the outage, many users took to other social media platforms, such as X (formerly Twitter), to express their frustration and share memes about the situation. Meta Platforms did not immediately respond to requests for comment, leaving the cause of the outage unclear. This lack of communication has led to increased scrutiny of Meta's infrastructure and its ability to handle technical issues.

The outage primarily affected users on the East Coast of the US, with major cities like New York and Boston reporting significant disruptions. While the services were restored relatively quickly, the incident highlights the challenges Meta faces in maintaining the stability of its widely used platforms.