X disruption in Pakistan caused by global outage, says PTA

Users across Pakistan experienced widespread disruption while accessing X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, with complaints ranging from media content failing to load to complete service outages, though the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) clarified the issue stemmed from a global outage and was not specific to Pakistan.

Between 5pm and 7pm, Downdetector logged a sharp spike in complaints -- over 350 within minutes -- primarily related to the app’s functionality. The majority of users reported issues with the app itself, while others flagged login problems or an inability to load their feeds.

Nukta contacted several users, all of whom confirmed disruption. Most said their feeds failed to load, while others noted that media content wouldn’t play on the mobile app, though some text content remained visible.

Global disruption also affecting Pakistan, says PTA

Shortly after being contacted by Nukta, PTA issued an official statement confirming the outage was part of a broader global disruption affecting multiple countries, including Pakistan.

It referenced a similar outage on Thursday, May 22, which was eventually resolved by X. The authority added that no technical faults were found within Pakistan’s internet infrastructure and that all other online services remained unaffected.

PTA also cited NetBlocks, a global internet observatory, which confirmed the disruption was international in scope and not linked to any local filtering or restrictions.

“PTA continues to monitor the situation and will keep the public informed of any significant updates,” the statement concluded.

Suspected data center fire in Oregon

Meanwhile, X said it was working to resolve widespread service disruptions caused by a data centre outage that began a day earlier, but did not clarify how many regions were affected.

In a post, the platform’s engineering team said login and signup functions remained down for some users, with delays in notifications and Premium features. “We’re working around the clock to fix this. Thank you for your patience,” the post read.

The disruption first surfaced early Friday, when X cited a data centre outage. While the platform hasn’t confirmed the cause, speculation mounted after a fire was reported Thursday at a Hillsboro, Oregon data centre used by X.

Wired reported that the blaze broke out in a battery room at the Hillsboro Technology Park, which was filled with smoke but contained. Emergency services responded, and the fire did not spread beyond the affected room.

Citing unnamed sources, Wired said the facility is leased by X, but the platform has not publicly commented. It remains unclear whether its server operations were directly affected.

X was restored in Pakistan on May 7 after months of outage, coinciding with a period of heightened tensions between India and Pakistan. A government ally at the time said the platform had been unblocked to allow Pakistanis to "respond to India effectively in this narrative war."

The country’s interior ministry had earlier confirmed that access to X was restricted around the February 2024 general elections, citing national security concerns—a move later acknowledged in a formal submission to the Islamabad High Court.

Despite the ban, many senior officials, including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, continued to post on X—likely using VPNs to bypass the restrictions, Reuters had reported.