Facebook and Instagram are gradually recovering from an outage on March 5, during which users experienced difficulties accessing the platforms, prompting concerns about potential hacking incidents. However, this was attributed to technical issues rather than security breaches.
Facebook and Instagram Down
The disruptions to Meta’s services, Facebook and Instagram, began around 10:45am EST, with numerous users encountering difficulties accessing the apps. By 11:26am EST, users were prompted to log back into Facebook, and Instagram on iPhones displayed an error message stating “couldn’t load posts.” Approximately 500,000 Facebook users reported issues, with Down Detector indicating a significant spike in reports during mid-morning.
Have Facebook And Instagram Been Hacked?
No, it doesn’t appear that Facebook and Instagram have been hacked; rather, the two services are experiencing an outage. According to Jake Moore, global cybersecurity advisor at ESET, Facebook has a history of downtime, which could be due to various reasons. While it’s highly unlikely to be a cyber-attack, Moore notes that this possibility can never be entirely ruled out.
Facebook owner Meta confirmed the issue via X formerly Twitter, saying the firm is “working on this now.”
We're aware people are having trouble accessing our services. We are working on this now.
— Andy Stone (@andymstone) March 5, 2024
A Meta spokesperson provided an email update stating, “Earlier today, a technical issue caused people to have difficulty accessing some of our services. We resolved the issue as quickly as possible for everyone who was impacted, and we apologize for any inconvenience.”
Facebook And Instagram Down—The Reaction
With Facebook and Instagram experiencing downtime, many users turned to Twitter, formerly known as X. This prompted a smug post from the social media platform’s owner, Elon Musk, who wrote, “If you’re reading this post, it’s because our servers are working.”
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 5, 2024
If you’re reading this post, it’s because our servers are working
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 5, 2024
Concerns about potential hacking incidents arose among some users, leading to relief when they realized this wasn’t the case.
Me Right Now 🤕
— Ashok (@Astraeus_45) March 5, 2024
#instagramdown #facebookdown#Instagram #Facebook pic.twitter.com/M5BPsrUj7l
Experts Analyse The Meta Outage
Experts from Cisco’s ThousandEyes Internet Intelligence team have analyzed the Meta outage, shedding light on the root cause of the issue. According to ThousandEyes, the outage was likely triggered by a problem with a backend service, such as authentication, rather than a network connectivity issue. While Meta’s web servers remained reachable and responsive, users encountered errors when attempting to log in, indicating a backend service malfunction. ThousandEyes observed a gradual recovery of Meta services by approximately 16:50 UTC (8:50 am PST), with the incident appearing to be fully resolved by 18:40 UTC (10:40 am PST).
However, some users continue to report difficulties accessing their accounts, particularly related to two-factor authentication (2FA) issues, such as SMS codes not functioning. This suggests residual issues with Facebook. Further updates are pending, as efforts are made to address these ongoing concerns.
And we're back 💙 So sorry for those who were unable to access Facebook earlier today.
— Facebook (@facebook) March 5, 2024
Facebook and Instagram Security
Once Facebook and Instagram are accessible again, users will need to log back in. It’s advisable to enhance security measures by utilizing a password manager like 1Password or Bitwarden.
Jake Moore recommends that users take advantage of this opportunity to generate a new unique password through a password manager if they choose the “forgotten password” option. Additionally, enabling two-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security to safeguard accounts from potential hackers.