Instagram and Facebook messenger appear to have gone down, with thousands of users complaining about being unable to send or post messages.
The outage began shortly before 9.30pm, according to the tracking website Down Detector.
It appears to have affected people across the world, although most complaints were concentrated in the UK, US and Europe.
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“I’ve been crying for 30 minutes annoyed with my Internet because I wasn’t able to delete a story I posted unintentionally but in fact Instagram had fallen,” wrote one devastated Instagram user on Twitter.
Another wrote: “You know Facebook messenger is down when the whole of Facebook runs to twitter so see if it’s just them experiencing issues.”
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1/50 14 June 2020
People take part in a Black Lives Matter protest march in central Tokyo
AFP via Getty
2/50 13 June 2020
Protesters raise their fists during a demonstration against police brutality and racism in Paris, France. The march was organised by supporters of Assa Traore, whose brother Adama died in police custody in 2016, in circumstances that remain unclear
EPA
3/50 12 June 2020
A pro-democracy supporter shouts at riot police during an anti-national security law rally in Mongkok district in Hong Kong, China. Protesters heeded online calls to gather as the city marks the one-year anniversary of the major clashes between police and pro-democracy demonstrators over the controversial extradition bill
Getty
4/50 11 June 2020
A section of the River Spree next to the Reichstag building coloured green by activists from "Extinction Rebellion" to protest the German government's coal policies in Berlin
AFP via Getty
5/50 10 June 2020
A woman poses in front of a decapitated statue of Christopher Columbus at Christopher Columbus Park in Boston Massachusetts. The statue's head, damaged overnight, was recovered by the Boston Police Department, as a movement to remove statues commemorating slavers and colonisers continues to sweep across the US
AFP via Getty
6/50 9 June 2020
Ivy McGregor, left, reads a resolution during the funeral for George Floyd at The Fountain of Praise church in Houston. George Floyd is being laid to rest in his hometown, the culmination of a long farewell to the 46-year-old African American whose death in custody ignited global protests against police brutality and racism
AFP via Getty
7/50 8 June 2020
People raise their fist and stand on their knees as they demonstrate in Nantes, during a Black Lives Matter protest
AFP via Getty
8/50 7 June 2020
A woman looks on during a protest against the killing of George Floyd in Osaka city, western Japan
EPA
9/50 6 June 2020
Demonstrator raise their fists at the Lincoln Memorial during a protest against police brutality and racism in Washington, DC. Demonstrations are being held across the US following the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, while being arrested in Minneapolis, Minnesota
AFP via Getty
10/50 5 June 2020
A handout photo made available by 2020 Planet Labs shows an aerial view of the large diesel spill in the Ambarnaya River outside Norilsk in the Arctic. Russia has managed to contain a massive diesel spill into a river in the Arctic, a spokeswoman for the emergencies ministry told AFP. Environmentalists said the oil spill, which took place last May 29, was the worst such accident ever in the Arctic region
Planet Labs Inc./AFP via Getty
11/50 4 June 2020
Activists hold a candlelit remembrance outside Victoria Park in Hong Kong, after the annual vigil, that traditionally takes place in the park to mark the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, was banned on public health grounds because coronavirus
AFP via Getty
12/50 3 June 2020
A visitor walks in Odaiba as the sun sets in Tokyo
AP
13/50 2 June 2020
Activists of the Socialist Unity Centre of India shout slogans in Ahmedabad in solidarity with protests against the recent killing of George Floyd
AP
14/50 1 June 2020
Activists take part in a Black Lives Matter protest in Zurich after the recent death of George Floyd
EPA
15/50 31 May 2020
A black man and a white woman hold their hands up in front of police officers in downtown Long Beach during a protest against the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died while being arrested and pinned to the ground by the knee of a Minneapolis police officer. Protests sweeping the United States over the death of George Floyd reverberated on the other side of the globe when thousands marched in solidarity on the streets of New Zealand
AFP via Getty
16/50 30 May 2020
Police officers are seen amid tear gas as protesters continue to rally against the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Reuters
17/50 29 May 2020
A boy holds a sign as refugees protest outside the UNHCR offices against a government decision that they should leave their accommodation provided through European Union and UNHCR funds by the end of May, in Athens, Greece
Reuters
18/50 28 May 2020
Cloud iridescence, an optical phenomenon where light is diffracted through water droplets, is pictured at the edge of some clouds before a summer thunderstorm over Bangkok
AFP via Getty
19/50 27 May 2020
Riot police try to control pro-democracy supporters at a rally in Causeway Bay district, Hong Kong
Getty
20/50 26 May 2020
Protesters and police face each other during a rally after a black man died in police custody hours after a bystander's video showed an officer kneeling on the handcuffed man's neck, even after he pleaded that he could not breathe and had stopped moving
Star Tribune via AP
21/50 25 May 2020
The aerobatic demonstration team 'Frecce Tricolori' of the Italian Air Force flies in formation above the Milan Cathedral. Starting from 25 May, the Frecce Tricolori will perform every day in the skies throughout Italy as part of the 74th anniversary celebrations of the founding of the Italian Republic and to pay homage to the areas most affected by the coronavirus
EPA
22/50 24 May 2020
Saudi Arabia's holy city of Mecca during the early hours of Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim holiday which starts at the conclusion of the holy fasting month of Ramadan
AFP via Getty
23/50 23 May 2020
Tamika Eastley, left, and Anthony Ragusa work out as the sun sets over the Kangaroo Point Cliffs in Brisbane, Australia
EPA
24/50 22 May 2020
Firefighters spray water on the wreckage of a Pakistan International Airlines aircraft after it crashed into a residential area in Karachi
AFP via Getty
25/50 21 May 2020
Indigenous leader Kretan Kaingang wears a face mask with a hashtag that reads in Portuguese: "Get out Bolsonaro" during a protest demanding the impeachment of President Jair Bolsonaro outside the National Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, Thursday, May 21, 2020. As Brazil careens toward a full-blown public health emergency and economic meltdown, opponents have filed a request for Bolsonaro's impeachment based on his mishandling of the new coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)
AP
26/50 20 May 2020
People wait in line to undergo the coronavirus tests while keeping distance from each other at a makeshift clinic set up on a playground in Incheon, South Korea
Yonhap/AP
27/50 19 May 2020
Firefighters fighting a fire at a plastics factory in front of a huge cloud of smoke in Ladenburg, Germany
dpa via AP
28/50 18 May 2020
Ugandan academic Stella Nyanzi reacts as police officers detain her for protesting against the way that government distributes the relief food and lockdown situation in Kampala
Reuters
29/50 17 May 2020
A woman sits alone on a bench in a park following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Dublin, Ireland
Reuters
30/50 16 May 2020
Crematory workers using protective gear are pictured at a crematory in Nezahualcoyotl during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), on the outskirts of Mexico City, Mexico
Reuters
31/50 15 May 2020
Healthcare workers, nurses and doctors, unified under the movement called "Take Care of Care" wearing face masks protest against the Belgian authorities' management of the coronavirus crisis, at the MontLegia CHC Hospital
Reuters
32/50 14 May 2020
A girl watches over goats on the banks of the Dal Lake during rainfall in Srinagar
AFP via Getty Images
33/50 13 May 2020
Life-size cardboard figures with photos of football fans are positioned on the stands of Borussia Moenchengladbach's football stadium for their next game, which will be played without spectators, due to the coronavirus outbreak in Germany
Reuters
34/50 12 May 2020
Nurses wearing face masks take part in an event held to mark International Nurses Day, at Wuhan Tongji Hospital in China
China Daily via Reuters
35/50 11 May 2020
Iraqi protesters gather on the Al-Jumhuriyah bridge in the capital Baghdad during an anti-government demonstration. Modest anti-government rallies resumed in some Iraqi cities Sunday, clashing with security forces and ending months of relative calm just days after Prime Minister Mustafa Kadhemi's government came to power. The protests first erupted in Baghdad and Shiite-majority southern cities in October, demanding an end to corruption and unemployment and an overhaul of the ruling class
AFP via Getty
36/50 10 May 2020
A man wearing a mask walks his dog in Madrid during the hours allowed by the government to exercise. Spain's two biggest cities, Madrid and Barcelona, will not enter the next phase out of coronavirus lockdown along with many other regions next week
AFP via Getty
37/50 9 May 2020
Russian President Vladimir Putin addresses the nation after laying flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier near the Kremlin wall in Moscow, Russia. Russia marks the 75th anniversary since the capitulation of Nazi Germany in WWII amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic
EPA
38/50 8 May 2020
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, President of the German Parliament Bundestag Wolfgang Schaeuble, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of the Federal Council Bundesrat in Germany Dietmar Woidke and the presiding judge of the German Federal Constitutional Court's second senate, Andreas Vosskuhle attend wreath-laying ceremony to mark the 75th anniversary of the end of World War Two, at the Neue Wache Memorial in Berlin. Countries in Europe are commemorating the Victory in Europe Day, known as VE Day that celebrates Nazi Germany's surrender during World World II on 8 May 1945
EPA
39/50 7 May 2020
A policeman uses his baton to push a resident breaking rules, during an extended nationwide lockdown to slow down the spread of coronavirus in Ahmedabad, India
Reuters
40/50 6 May 2020
A nurse tends to a crying newborn baby wearing a face shield at the National Maternity Hospital in Hanoi
AFP via Getty
41/50 5 May 2020
Bride Janine runs over to her wedding at a Drive-in cinema in Duesseldorf, Germany. The Drive-in theatre started to register official marriages on a stage, allowing all relatives and friends to attend in their cars, as weddings at the registry office are limited due to the coronavirus pandemic
AP
42/50 4 May 2020
Storekeepers asking for the reopening of shops and commercial activities gather for a flashmob protest on Piazza San Marco in Venice, as Italy starts to ease its lockdown
AFP via Getty
43/50 3 May 2020
A street vendor wearing a protective face mask waits for customers in Chinatown, after the government started opening some restaurants outside shopping malls, parks, and barbershops in Bangkok, Thailand
Reuters
44/50 2 May 2020
Two women carry longboards on an esplanade in Barcelona, during the hours allowed by the government to exercise, for the first time since the beginning of a national lockdown. All Spaniards are again allowed to leave their homes since today to walk or play sports after 48 days of very strict confinement to curb the coronavirus pandemic
AFP via Getty
45/50 1 May 2020
A girl, wearing a protective mask, plays with bubbles at a shopping mall in Gimpo, South Korea
Reuters
46/50 30 April 2020
Buddhist monks wearing face masks pray during Buddha's birthday at the Gwanghwamun Plaza in Seoul, South Korea
AP
47/50 29 April 2020
A visitor in a plexiglass lock talks to a resident at Les Jardins d'Astrid, a rest home in Maurage, La Louviere, on April 29, 2020, as the visits to residents of rest homes are possible from today in Wallonia. - Belgium is in its seventh week of confinement in the ongoing corona virus crisis. The government has announced a phased plan to attempt an exit from the lockdown situation in the country, continuing to avoid the spread of Covid-19
Belga/AFP/Getty
48/50 28 April 2020
A demonstrator is seen near a bank on fire during unrest, as an economic crisis brings demonstrations back onto the streets in Tripoli, Lebanon April 28, 2020
Reuters
49/50 27 April 2020
A medical specialist walks out of a mobile laboratory, which is carrying out coronavirus tests
Reuters
50/50 26 April 2020
People wearing protective face masks practice social distancing as they pray outside a church in Kiev near the memorial dedicated to firefighters and workers who died after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, on the 34th anniversary of the event
Reuters
1/50 14 June 2020
People take part in a Black Lives Matter protest march in central Tokyo
AFP via Getty
2/50 13 June 2020
Protesters raise their fists during a demonstration against police brutality and racism in Paris, France. The march was organised by supporters of Assa Traore, whose brother Adama died in police custody in 2016, in circumstances that remain unclear
EPA
3/50 12 June 2020
A pro-democracy supporter shouts at riot police during an anti-national security law rally in Mongkok district in Hong Kong, China. Protesters heeded online calls to gather as the city marks the one-year anniversary of the major clashes between police and pro-democracy demonstrators over the controversial extradition bill
Getty
4/50 11 June 2020
A section of the River Spree next to the Reichstag building coloured green by activists from "Extinction Rebellion" to protest the German government's coal policies in Berlin
AFP via Getty
5/50 10 June 2020
A woman poses in front of a decapitated statue of Christopher Columbus at Christopher Columbus Park in Boston Massachusetts. The statue's head, damaged overnight, was recovered by the Boston Police Department, as a movement to remove statues commemorating slavers and colonisers continues to sweep across the US
AFP via Getty
6/50 9 June 2020
Ivy McGregor, left, reads a resolution during the funeral for George Floyd at The Fountain of Praise church in Houston. George Floyd is being laid to rest in his hometown, the culmination of a long farewell to the 46-year-old African American whose death in custody ignited global protests against police brutality and racism
AFP via Getty
7/50 8 June 2020
People raise their fist and stand on their knees as they demonstrate in Nantes, during a Black Lives Matter protest
AFP via Getty
8/50 7 June 2020
A woman looks on during a protest against the killing of George Floyd in Osaka city, western Japan
EPA
9/50 6 June 2020
Demonstrator raise their fists at the Lincoln Memorial during a protest against police brutality and racism in Washington, DC. Demonstrations are being held across the US following the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, while being arrested in Minneapolis, Minnesota
AFP via Getty
10/50 5 June 2020
A handout photo made available by 2020 Planet Labs shows an aerial view of the large diesel spill in the Ambarnaya River outside Norilsk in the Arctic. Russia has managed to contain a massive diesel spill into a river in the Arctic, a spokeswoman for the emergencies ministry told AFP. Environmentalists said the oil spill, which took place last May 29, was the worst such accident ever in the Arctic region
Planet Labs Inc./AFP via Getty
11/50 4 June 2020
Activists hold a candlelit remembrance outside Victoria Park in Hong Kong, after the annual vigil, that traditionally takes place in the park to mark the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, was banned on public health grounds because coronavirus
AFP via Getty
12/50 3 June 2020
A visitor walks in Odaiba as the sun sets in Tokyo
AP
13/50 2 June 2020
Activists of the Socialist Unity Centre of India shout slogans in Ahmedabad in solidarity with protests against the recent killing of George Floyd
AP
14/50 1 June 2020
Activists take part in a Black Lives Matter protest in Zurich after the recent death of George Floyd
EPA
15/50 31 May 2020
A black man and a white woman hold their hands up in front of police officers in downtown Long Beach during a protest against the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died while being arrested and pinned to the ground by the knee of a Minneapolis police officer. Protests sweeping the United States over the death of George Floyd reverberated on the other side of the globe when thousands marched in solidarity on the streets of New Zealand
AFP via Getty
16/50 30 May 2020
Police officers are seen amid tear gas as protesters continue to rally against the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Reuters
17/50 29 May 2020
A boy holds a sign as refugees protest outside the UNHCR offices against a government decision that they should leave their accommodation provided through European Union and UNHCR funds by the end of May, in Athens, Greece
Reuters
18/50 28 May 2020
Cloud iridescence, an optical phenomenon where light is diffracted through water droplets, is pictured at the edge of some clouds before a summer thunderstorm over Bangkok
AFP via Getty
19/50 27 May 2020
Riot police try to control pro-democracy supporters at a rally in Causeway Bay district, Hong Kong
Getty
20/50 26 May 2020
Protesters and police face each other during a rally after a black man died in police custody hours after a bystander's video showed an officer kneeling on the handcuffed man's neck, even after he pleaded that he could not breathe and had stopped moving
Star Tribune via AP
21/50 25 May 2020
The aerobatic demonstration team 'Frecce Tricolori' of the Italian Air Force flies in formation above the Milan Cathedral. Starting from 25 May, the Frecce Tricolori will perform every day in the skies throughout Italy as part of the 74th anniversary celebrations of the founding of the Italian Republic and to pay homage to the areas most affected by the coronavirus
EPA
22/50 24 May 2020
Saudi Arabia's holy city of Mecca during the early hours of Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim holiday which starts at the conclusion of the holy fasting month of Ramadan
AFP via Getty
23/50 23 May 2020
Tamika Eastley, left, and Anthony Ragusa work out as the sun sets over the Kangaroo Point Cliffs in Brisbane, Australia
EPA
24/50 22 May 2020
Firefighters spray water on the wreckage of a Pakistan International Airlines aircraft after it crashed into a residential area in Karachi
AFP via Getty
25/50 21 May 2020
Indigenous leader Kretan Kaingang wears a face mask with a hashtag that reads in Portuguese: "Get out Bolsonaro" during a protest demanding the impeachment of President Jair Bolsonaro outside the National Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, Thursday, May 21, 2020. As Brazil careens toward a full-blown public health emergency and economic meltdown, opponents have filed a request for Bolsonaro's impeachment based on his mishandling of the new coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)
AP
26/50 20 May 2020
People wait in line to undergo the coronavirus tests while keeping distance from each other at a makeshift clinic set up on a playground in Incheon, South Korea
Yonhap/AP
27/50 19 May 2020
Firefighters fighting a fire at a plastics factory in front of a huge cloud of smoke in Ladenburg, Germany
dpa via AP
28/50 18 May 2020
Ugandan academic Stella Nyanzi reacts as police officers detain her for protesting against the way that government distributes the relief food and lockdown situation in Kampala
Reuters
29/50 17 May 2020
A woman sits alone on a bench in a park following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Dublin, Ireland
Reuters
30/50 16 May 2020
Crematory workers using protective gear are pictured at a crematory in Nezahualcoyotl during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), on the outskirts of Mexico City, Mexico
Reuters
31/50 15 May 2020
Healthcare workers, nurses and doctors, unified under the movement called "Take Care of Care" wearing face masks protest against the Belgian authorities' management of the coronavirus crisis, at the MontLegia CHC Hospital
Reuters
32/50 14 May 2020
A girl watches over goats on the banks of the Dal Lake during rainfall in Srinagar
AFP via Getty Images
33/50 13 May 2020
Life-size cardboard figures with photos of football fans are positioned on the stands of Borussia Moenchengladbach's football stadium for their next game, which will be played without spectators, due to the coronavirus outbreak in Germany
Reuters
34/50 12 May 2020
Nurses wearing face masks take part in an event held to mark International Nurses Day, at Wuhan Tongji Hospital in China
China Daily via Reuters
35/50 11 May 2020
Iraqi protesters gather on the Al-Jumhuriyah bridge in the capital Baghdad during an anti-government demonstration. Modest anti-government rallies resumed in some Iraqi cities Sunday, clashing with security forces and ending months of relative calm just days after Prime Minister Mustafa Kadhemi's government came to power. The protests first erupted in Baghdad and Shiite-majority southern cities in October, demanding an end to corruption and unemployment and an overhaul of the ruling class
AFP via Getty
36/50 10 May 2020
A man wearing a mask walks his dog in Madrid during the hours allowed by the government to exercise. Spain's two biggest cities, Madrid and Barcelona, will not enter the next phase out of coronavirus lockdown along with many other regions next week
AFP via Getty
37/50 9 May 2020
Russian President Vladimir Putin addresses the nation after laying flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier near the Kremlin wall in Moscow, Russia. Russia marks the 75th anniversary since the capitulation of Nazi Germany in WWII amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic
EPA
38/50 8 May 2020
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, President of the German Parliament Bundestag Wolfgang Schaeuble, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of the Federal Council Bundesrat in Germany Dietmar Woidke and the presiding judge of the German Federal Constitutional Court's second senate, Andreas Vosskuhle attend wreath-laying ceremony to mark the 75th anniversary of the end of World War Two, at the Neue Wache Memorial in Berlin. Countries in Europe are commemorating the Victory in Europe Day, known as VE Day that celebrates Nazi Germany's surrender during World World II on 8 May 1945
EPA
39/50 7 May 2020
A policeman uses his baton to push a resident breaking rules, during an extended nationwide lockdown to slow down the spread of coronavirus in Ahmedabad, India
Reuters
40/50 6 May 2020
A nurse tends to a crying newborn baby wearing a face shield at the National Maternity Hospital in Hanoi
AFP via Getty
41/50 5 May 2020
Bride Janine runs over to her wedding at a Drive-in cinema in Duesseldorf, Germany. The Drive-in theatre started to register official marriages on a stage, allowing all relatives and friends to attend in their cars, as weddings at the registry office are limited due to the coronavirus pandemic
AP
42/50 4 May 2020
Storekeepers asking for the reopening of shops and commercial activities gather for a flashmob protest on Piazza San Marco in Venice, as Italy starts to ease its lockdown
AFP via Getty
43/50 3 May 2020
A street vendor wearing a protective face mask waits for customers in Chinatown, after the government started opening some restaurants outside shopping malls, parks, and barbershops in Bangkok, Thailand
Reuters
44/50 2 May 2020
Two women carry longboards on an esplanade in Barcelona, during the hours allowed by the government to exercise, for the first time since the beginning of a national lockdown. All Spaniards are again allowed to leave their homes since today to walk or play sports after 48 days of very strict confinement to curb the coronavirus pandemic
AFP via Getty
45/50 1 May 2020
A girl, wearing a protective mask, plays with bubbles at a shopping mall in Gimpo, South Korea
Reuters
46/50 30 April 2020
Buddhist monks wearing face masks pray during Buddha's birthday at the Gwanghwamun Plaza in Seoul, South Korea
AP
47/50 29 April 2020
A visitor in a plexiglass lock talks to a resident at Les Jardins d'Astrid, a rest home in Maurage, La Louviere, on April 29, 2020, as the visits to residents of rest homes are possible from today in Wallonia. - Belgium is in its seventh week of confinement in the ongoing corona virus crisis. The government has announced a phased plan to attempt an exit from the lockdown situation in the country, continuing to avoid the spread of Covid-19
Belga/AFP/Getty
48/50 28 April 2020
A demonstrator is seen near a bank on fire during unrest, as an economic crisis brings demonstrations back onto the streets in Tripoli, Lebanon April 28, 2020
Reuters
49/50 27 April 2020
A medical specialist walks out of a mobile laboratory, which is carrying out coronavirus tests
Reuters
50/50 26 April 2020
People wearing protective face masks practice social distancing as they pray outside a church in Kiev near the memorial dedicated to firefighters and workers who died after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, on the 34th anniversary of the event
Reuters
Neither Facebook nor Instagram responded to the complaints on Twitter or their websites.
However both services appeared to have been restored for users by around 10.30pm.
Outages were also reported by several major US phone carriers experienced outages a few hours earlier on Monday afternoon.
T Mobile, Verizon, AT&T, Sprint all suffered spikes in reported outages beginning around 12pm EST (5pm in UK).
Customers of the major carriers took to Twitter to complain that despite having full bars, they had no cell service.
In July last year Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp all went down for almost a day .
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