Meta Platforms experienced a temporary outage affecting its social media applications, including Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, and the newer Threads, on Monday. Downdetector.com reported that thousands of users encountered access issues during the incident.
During the peak of the outage, which lasted for over an hour, more than 14,000 users reported problems with Instagram. Additionally, around 7,000 users faced difficulties with Facebook, while approximately 2,700 users experienced issues with WhatsApp.
Threads, Meta’s latest platform designed to rival Twitter, was also affected, with about 470 users noting access problems.
Downdetector monitors outages by compiling status reports from various sources, including user-submitted information. It is possible that the number of users impacted was even larger than reported.
Meta has not yet provided a response to inquiries from Reuters regarding the outages.
In a related development, a Meta executive revealed plans to identify government-affiliated accounts on Threads during an Australian parliamentary inquiry focused on foreign interference. Josh Machin, Meta’s head of public policy for Australia, stated the company values labeling for state-affiliated media and fact-checking and aims to implement these features swiftly.
This announcement follows the recent launch of Threads, which has drawn comparisons to Twitter. Since billionaire Elon Musk acquired Twitter in 2022, the platform has eliminated tags on government-affiliated accounts, leading to criticisms about a decline in users’ media literacy.
When asked whether accounts like the Russian state-affiliated broadcaster RT or the Chinese government-affiliated Xinhua News Agency would be labeled on Threads, Machin expressed hope that this would be achieved. He added that any state-affiliated media violating Meta’s policies would be removed, emphasizing that developing broader tagging functionalities remains a top priority as they enhance the platform.
Currently, Meta’s Facebook and Instagram already display tags on RT and Xinhua accounts to indicate that they are state-controlled media from Russia and China, respectively.
© Thomson Reuters 2023
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