Early Monday morning, a widespread outage at Amazon Web Services (AWS) disrupted several major websites and mobile applications around the world. The incident caused temporary downtime for Amazon, Snapchat, and Facebook, while Delta Air Lines and United Airlines also reported service interruptions in the United States. Despite the disruption, there were no reports of direct effects on flight operations.
The issue originated within AWS's cloud computing network, which underpins a vast number of global digital services. According to DownDetector, users across the East Coast of the U.S. โ particularly in New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles โ reported the majority of problems. Outside the U.S., U.K. banking customers of Lloyds, Halifax, and Bank of Scotland experienced difficulties accessing their online accounts.
AWS confirmed that the disruption was linked to elevated error rates and delays within its DynamoDB database service in the US-EAST-1 region. At approximately 4:26 a.m. ET, Amazon acknowledged the issue publicly, citing a "significant increase in error rates" affecting multiple services.
By mid-morning, Amazon engineers had restored much of the functionality, though sporadic problems continued for some platforms. The company said it was continuing to work toward full resolution and promised further updates once systems were completely stabilized.
The event highlights the critical role AWS plays in the global digital ecosystem โ supporting everything from airlines to social media networks and financial institutions. Even a brief disruption in one AWS region can cascade across industries, revealing just how interconnected and dependent modern online infrastructure has become.