Meta's Instagram Down for Thousands of Users in US, Downdetector Shows

Instagram app is seen on a smartphone in this illustration taken, July 13, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
Instagram app is seen on a smartphone in this illustration taken, July 13, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Meta's Instagram Down for Thousands of Users in US, Downdetector Shows

Instagram app is seen on a smartphone in this illustration taken, July 13, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
Instagram app is seen on a smartphone in this illustration taken, July 13, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Meta Platforms's Instagram was down for thousands of users in the US on Wednesday morning, according outage tracking website Downdetector.com.

There were more than 6,549 incidents of people reporting issues with the platform as of 9:16 a.m. ET, according to Downdetector, which tracks outages by collating status reports from a number of sources.

Meta did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Last year, Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp platforms faced disruptions on several occasions, including a global outage in March.

Downdetector's numbers are based on user-submitted reports. The actual number of affected users may vary.



Russian Fines Google $78 mln for Ignoring Previous Penalties

The logo for Google is seen at a Google store in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
The logo for Google is seen at a Google store in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
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Russian Fines Google $78 mln for Ignoring Previous Penalties

The logo for Google is seen at a Google store in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly
The logo for Google is seen at a Google store in Manhattan, New York City, US, November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly

A Russian court fined Alphabet's Google 8 billion roubles ($77.9 million) on Tuesday for not complying with previous penalty orders, the Moscow courts press service said on Telegram.

Russia has for several years ordered foreign technology platforms to remove content it deems illegal, issuing small but persistent fines when it sees failures to comply. Tuesday's fine marked a significant increase on fines of around 4 million roubles that are usually levied.

The Chertanovo District Court in Moscow said Tuesday's fine had been issued for Google's failure to comply with an administrative punishment. It did not specify which administrative offence the fine was in relation too, Reuters reported.

YouTube has drawn particular ire for hosting content Moscow objects to. The video platform used to attract around 50 million daily users in Russia, but those numbers have dropped to around 12 million, according to Google data.

Critics accuse the Russian authorities of

deliberately disrupting

YouTube's download speeds to prevent Russians from viewing content there that is opposed to President Vladimir Putin and his government.

Russia denies that, saying the issues are caused by Google's failure to upgrade equipment - a charge disputed by the company and technology experts.

Putin in December accused Google of being a tool used by the US government to score political points.