Update (12:15 p.m. ET): Zoom has deployed a fix for the outages and says service for some users should be restored.
Zoom is down for many users in the U.S. and UK, causing major disruptions for workers using the video conferencing service and for teachers and students especially as they return to online schooling.
Zoom acknowledged partial outages on its service status page and said via Twitter that it's aware of the issues and is investigating them.
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"We have received reports of users being unable to visit the Zoom website and unable to start and join Zoom Meetings and Webinars. We are currently investigating and will provide updates as we have them."
Hey there! 👋 We have received reports of users being unable to start and join Zoom Meetings and Webinars. We are currently investigating and will provide updates as we have them. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience. Please follow https://t.co/aqz5nS7fZY.August 24, 2020
DownDetector shows over 12,000 reported issues started around 8 a.m. ET and are mainly on the East Coast of North America and in the UK.
Zoom has become an almost essential service in the last several months, as millions of people turned to the video conferencing service to work from home and take online classes. In the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, the sudden boom in usage led to some Zoom security issues, though the company addressed many of them.
As the morning went on, more reports of Zoom outages began filtering in from the Midwest and West Coast, as users woke up to find they couldn't join meetings or log into Zoom. Many parents and educators found that planned school lessons had to be postponed:
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Holy Cow 🐮 @zoom_us is Down on a Super Busy Monday / we had a full calendar 📅 / guess Schools now have #ZoomDays added to #SnowDays pic.twitter.com/FsC7tCPqmgAugust 24, 2020
By mid-morning, at 10:23 a.m. ET, Zoom tweeted that it has identified the issue and was working on a fix.
If you're having trouble connecting to Zoom, we have identified the issue and are working on a fix. Please follow https://t.co/aqz5nSoQRw for updates. We're so sorry about the inconvenience.August 24, 2020
Then, a little after 11 a.m., Zoom said that they had deployed a fix and that some users should have service restored. They will continue working on the issues for any users still experiencing outages.
Thanks for hanging in there! We are deploying a fix now. Service should be restored for some users and we’re continuing to complete the fix for any users still impacted. We're sorry about the disruption. Follow https://t.co/aqz5nSoQRw for updates.August 24, 2020
Kelly is the streaming channel editor for Tom’s Guide, so basically, she watches TV for a living. Previously, she was a freelance entertainment writer for Yahoo, Vulture, TV Guide and other outlets. When she’s not watching TV and movies for work, she’s watching them for fun, seeing live music, writing songs, knitting and gardening.