Social media platform X hit by global disruption; no word on what caused it

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A photo taken on November 17, 2023 shows the logo of US online social media and social networking service X - formerly Twitter - on a smartphone screen in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP)

More than 47,000 US users faced access issues with X and X Pro, according to Downdetector data.

PHOTO: AFP

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SAN FRANCISCO – Tens of thousands of global users of X, formerly Twitter, reported problems on Dec 21 using the Elon Musk-owned social network.

Reports of the platform’s troubles began spiking just before 6am GMT (2pm in Singapore) on monitoring site Downdetector.

Users on X, formerly known as Twitter, were unable to view posts on the social media site with a message that said “Welcome to X!”

Users encountered loading issues on X Pro, formerly TweetDeck, with a message that said “Waiting for posts”.

Timelines on the platform were emptied and no new posts visible, although the twitter.com site was available.

With no way to post on X, social media users published updates about the disruption on rivals, including Facebook, Threads and Reddit.

The platform resumed service for users in multiple countries shortly after 6.40am GMT.

At the peak, Downdetector indicated that about 67,000 US users reported problems.

There has been no immediate comment from X, nor any indication of what caused the disruption.

X is currently facing multiple headwinds, including

a European Union probe

under a law designed to combat disinformation and hate, criticism of the platform’s response to recent

rioting in Dublin

, and an

exodus of big-name advertisers

.

Mr Musk’s company is now worth less than half of the US$44 billion (S$58.5 billion) he paid for it in October 2022, according to internal documents sent to staff and reported by tech publication The Verge.

A major disruption on X was also reported by Downdetector in February, affecting thousands of users.

User complaints shared online included being unable to post messages, being told they had exceeded a daily limit of posts, and the inability to send direct messages. AFP, REUTERS

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