Table of Contents
- What Happened?
- Services Hit by the Outage
- AWS at the Center of the Chaos
- How Users Were Affected
- Official Responses (or Lack Thereof)
- Sources
What Happened?
On Monday, October 20, 2025, internet users across the globe were met with error messages, spinning loading icons, and complete service blackouts as a massive digital disruption swept through some of the world’s most popular platforms. From online gaming to cryptocurrency trading and fast-food ordering, the ripple effects were immediate and widespread.
While the exact root cause remains under investigation, early indicators point to a significant failure within Amazon Web Services (AWS)—the cloud infrastructure backbone for countless digital services.
Services Hit by the Outage
According to real-time outage tracker DownDetector, the following major platforms reported widespread issues:
- Amazon
- Coinbase
- Roblox
- Hulu
- Venmo
- McDonald’s mobile app and ordering system
Users flooded social media with complaints ranging from failed logins to payment processing errors and complete inability to access core features.
AWS at the Center of the Chaos
Though Amazon has not issued an official statement as of press time, multiple affected companies—including Coinbase and Roblox—confirmed that their disruptions stemmed from an underlying issue with AWS. This isn’t the first time AWS outages have triggered global digital tremors; similar incidents in 2021 and 2023 caused comparable cascading failures.
AWS powers an estimated one-third of the internet’s backend infrastructure, making it a single point of failure for thousands of businesses. When AWS stumbles, the digital world feels it.
How Users Were Affected
The outage hit during peak U.S. business hours, compounding its impact:
| Service | Reported Issue |
|---|---|
| Roblox | Players unable to join games or log in |
| Coinbase | Trading halted; app unresponsive |
| Venmo | Payments failed; balance updates delayed |
| McDonald’s App | Mobile orders canceled or stuck in queue |
For many, the outage wasn’t just inconvenient—it disrupted livelihoods, especially for content creators on Roblox and day traders relying on Coinbase.
Official Responses (or Lack Thereof)
As of 3 p.m. ET, Amazon had not commented publicly on the incident. AWS’s status page showed no active alerts, raising questions about monitoring transparency.
Coinbase posted a brief update on X (formerly Twitter): “We’re aware of connectivity issues linked to a third-party cloud provider. Our team is working to restore service.” Roblox echoed similar messaging, citing “external infrastructure problems.”
Meanwhile, users were left in the dark—refreshing apps, restarting devices, and wondering if their accounts had been compromised.
Sources
The New York Times – AWS Outage Report
DownDetector – Real-time Outage Map
