The social media giant formerly known as Twitter, rebranded as X under Elon Musk's ownership, was hit by a sudden interruption recently.
The latest incident marks the largest outage since the high-profile $44 billion acquisition of the tech billionaire in October 2022. According to the reports, the outage impacted nearly 100,000 users.
Since the microblogging platform was unusable at the time, several X users migrated to Meta's Threads.
X is Temporarily Down
Since Elon Musk assumed control, X has grappled with persistent technical challenges, leading to a series of disruptions.
Musk initiated a substantial workforce reduction, shedding more than half of the company's employees in the initial months of his ownership. The latest outage highlights ongoing hurdles faced by the platform and the potential impact on user experience.
On the morning of Dec. 21, users flooded downdetector.com with reports of X's outage. At its peak around 05:42 GMT, 90,389 users reported the platform as down.
The hashtags #TwitterDown and #XDown trended on the app with more people complaining that they can't see tweets, pictures, and even videos from the people they follow.
Memes circulated as users speculated about the reasons behind the disruption, showcasing worries about account suspensions.
I just know twitter headquarters looked at my bookmarks 😭#TwitterDown pic.twitter.com/GonN3IiW68
— ً (@_Xins) December 21, 2023
Related Article: Elon Musk's X Faces EU Probe Under Digital Services Act
X Users Move to Threads During Outage
Unable to publish on X, users turned to rival social networks like Facebook, Threads, and Reddit to report the incident. The outage exposed that the platform is vulnerable and this prompted users to explore alternative channels for their social interactions.
According to Euronews, the service on the platform was gradually restored for users across various countries after 06:40 GMT. During the outage, approximately 67,000 U.S. users reported issues, impacting not only X but also X Pro, formerly known as TweetDeck. The sudden disruption highlights the fragility of the platform and its associated services.
X Faces European Commission Proceedings
Despite the widespread disruption, X remained silent, offering no immediate comment on the incident. Elon Musk's app, now facing legal action from the European Commission, confronts allegations of potential breaches related to content moderation, advertising transparency, and data access.
This legal scrutiny represents the first-ever proceeding under the new Digital Services Act, reflecting broader concerns about internet safety.
The precise cause of the outage remains unknown, as per Gizmodo. X received an update, version 10.21, just days before the disruption, claiming to address issues and enhance performance.
Musk's attempt to rebrand the platform as X has faced resistance, evident in the ongoing use of #TwitterDown during outages.
Despite the severity of the incident, Elon Musk's executive, Chris Bakke, humorously suggested a potential population boom in nine months. The outage coincided with the birthday of X's CEO, Linda Yaccarino, adding an unexpected twist to the crisis.
