Yahoo's Edge, Finance, and Mail platforms suffered a significant and widespread outage on Wednesday, leaving thousands of users unable to access key services. Reports flooded in from across the UK and globally, with many encountering a frustrating 'too many requests' error message that prevented normal usage.
Outage Details and User Impact
According to the popular outage monitoring service Downdetector, at least 15,000 individual reports were logged during the peak of the disruption. This substantial number highlights the scale of the problem, affecting both personal and business users who rely on Yahoo for email, financial information, and browsing. In a related development, AOL services also appeared to be impacted, suggesting a potential broader issue within the parent company's infrastructure.
Company Response and Investigation
Yahoo promptly acknowledged the technical difficulties, issuing a statement confirming that their teams are actively investigating the cause. The company promised to provide updates as more information becomes available. The specific error message—'Too Many Requests'—typically indicates that Yahoo's servers were overwhelmed, possibly due to a surge in traffic or an internal system failure requiring stabilisation.
Historical Context and User Advice
This incident brings to mind the Yahoo cyber attack of 2016, which remains one of the largest data breaches in history, underscoring the ongoing challenges in maintaining robust digital security and reliability. In response to the current outage, users were advised to try several troubleshooting steps, including refreshing their web pages, clearing browser cache, switching internet connections or browsers, and utilising mobile applications as an alternative access method.
The outage serves as a reminder of the vulnerabilities in today's interconnected digital landscape, where even major tech giants can experience disruptive failures affecting millions.
