Microsoft works to resolve global outage affecting Outlook and Teams
Microsoft is working to restore services after a global outage hit Outlook, Teams, and Word, impacting thousands of users worldwide.
A major technical disruption impacted Microsoft 365 services worldwide, leaving thousands of users unable to access Outlook, Teams, and Word. The outage began late Thursday and affected individuals, businesses, and government agencies across dozens of countries, while also disrupting connectors used by artificial intelligence platforms like OpenAI and Anthropic. Tracking site Downdetector registered tens of thousands of user reports globally as server issues caused services to drop repeatedly under incoming traffic.
Microsoft stated that the incident was caused by high infrastructure loads rather than a cyber attack. Executive vice-president Charles Lamanna confirmed there was no indication of malicious activity. The company stated it was prioritizing "life, safety and government services" as engineers worked to stabilize server infrastructure and restore full functionality.
Sources: The Guardian, STV News, France24, Cyprus Mail, Sweden Herald
Sources
- Cyprus Mail — Microsoft 365, Outlook down for thousands of US users, Downdetector shows
- Sweden Herald — Microsoft Services Hit by Major Disruptions, Users Report Problems With Outlook and Teams
- The Guardian — Microsoft outage live: Microsoft prioritising ‘life, safety and government services’ as global outage wreaks havoc for Outlook users
- STV News — Microsoft outages continue as tech giant works to restore services
- France24 — Microsoft struggles to repair global Outlook outage, says no sign of 'malicious activity'
Earlier coverage
- Nov 13, 2026, 12:30 PM UTCMicrosoft struggles to restore 365 services as global outage continues
- Nov 13, 2026, 10:00 AM UTCMicrosoft struggles to restore services as global outage continues into second day