AT&T, one of the largest telecommunications providers in the United States, faced a major network outage on Thursday morning, causing disruptions for countless customers nationwide. Reports flooded in from various parts of the country, with users experiencing difficulties in making calls, sending texts, or accessing the internet.
While Verizon and T-Mobile also witnessed some network disturbances, the scale of the issues was notably lesser compared to AT&T. Both Verizon and T-Mobile clarified that their networks remained unaffected by AT&T's service interruption, suggesting that customers experiencing outages might have been limited in reaching AT&T users.
According to data from DownDetector, over 74,000 AT&T customers reported service disruptions, although this figure may not represent the full extent of the outage. Reports surged steadily throughout the morning, peaking before stabilizing around 9 am ET.
AT&T confirmed the widespread outage but refrained from providing a specific reason for the system failure. In a statement, the company acknowledged the issue, stating, "Some of our customers are experiencing wireless service interruptions this morning. We are working urgently to restore service to them," and recommended the use of Wi-Fi calling as an interim solution. Despite some parts of the network showing signs of recovery, AT&T could not offer a precise timeframe for complete restoration.
The cause of the outage remains undisclosed officially, though industry insiders suggest it could be linked to the handling of cellular services' call transitions between networks, commonly known as peering. There is no indication of malicious activity or cyberattacks contributing to the disruption.
Local governments also reported being impacted by the outage, with emergency services affected in several areas. San Francisco's Department of Emergency Management advised residents to seek alternate methods of contacting 911, while other regions similarly encouraged the use of alternative communication channels during the outage.
Notably, AT&T's dedicated emergency response network, FirstNet, remained operational throughout the incident, ensuring continuity for first responders and critical services.
Both Verizon and T-Mobile reassured their customers that their networks were operating normally, despite some reports of connectivity issues. Verizon attributed sporadic disruptions to difficulties in connecting with users on other networks, emphasizing that its own infrastructure remained unaffected.
