At 2:45 PM UK time, users experienced disruptions across Facebook and its messaging platform, Messenger. Those attempting to access the site encountered error messages such as “an unexpected error occurred” and “something went wrong,” as reported by The Independent. Other services under the Meta umbrella, including Instagram and WhatsApp, may have also faced similar issues, with reports indicating that the outages were felt globally.
Meta’s communications chief, Andy Stone, took to X to address the situation, stating, “We’re aware people are currently having trouble accessing our services. We’re working on it.” This message was shared just before many users began to notice improvements in their access to Meta’s applications, including Facebook.
We’re aware people are currently having trouble accessing our services. We’re working on it.— Andy Stone (@andymstone) June 12, 2026
Is Facebook down?
According to The Independent, anecdotal reports began surfacing around 3:38 PM UK time, indicating that some users were able to log back into their Facebook accounts, although others continued to face challenges. The HuffPost UK team confirmed that they regained access to their account by 3:46 PM.
Is Messenger down?
Outage tracking site Downdetector reported a spike in Messenger outages around 2:22 PM UK time, although the number of reported issues has since decreased significantly. Interestingly, the surge in traffic to Downdetector was so pronounced that the site itself appeared to experience difficulties.
Is Instagram down?
Downdetector indicated an increase in reported outages for Instagram at the time of this report. NordVPN noted that “Instagram is experiencing issues,” with a considerable number of users reporting problems with the website and mobile applications.
Is WhatsApp down?
In contrast, WhatsApp appeared to be functioning normally, as confirmed by Yahoo! Finance.
Why were Meta sites down today?
The exact cause of the outages remains unclear. HuffPost UK has reached out to Meta for clarification regarding which services were affected and the reasons behind the disruptions but has yet to receive a response. It is worth noting that Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp share server infrastructure, meaning that issues with one service can potentially impact all three.
In the past, Meta has experienced significant outages, such as the seven-hour disruption in 2021, which was attributed to a single erroneous command that compromised the integrity of the company’s network. This incident involved a vast network of fiber-optic cables connecting data centers worldwide, as explained by Santosh Janardhan, Facebook’s vice president of engineering and infrastructure.
As of now, the cause of the outages in 2026 remains to be determined.
