Global Internet Outage Disrupts Google, Cloudflare, and Popular Apps — Users Worldwide Report Access Failures

Written By Sneha Mukherjee

Glasgow, Scotland - 13th June, 2025 - A sweeping internet outage rocked the US and several parts of the world on Thursday, bringing down major services like Google, YouTube, Spotify, Etsy, Discord, and Snapchat. According to Downdetector, the crash began around 1:00 p.m. ET, sparking chaos across digital workspaces, social platforms, and content streaming apps. The root cause was traced to simultaneous issues affecting Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and Cloudflare, both of which serve as critical pillars of global internet infrastructure.

What Went Down?

Google Cloud experienced a serious disruption in its Identity and Access Management (IAM) system—a vital component that handles authentication across its cloud services. This impacted widely-used tools such as Gmail, Google Meet, Docs, Cloud Console, and even Vertex AI.

Cloudflare, which powers millions of websites and apps, confirmed that a third-party dependency outage disrupted its Workers KV service and affected access to services like WARP, Zero Trust, Access, Realtime, Workers AI, and others. At its peak, thousands of users worldwide were unable to load websites, access files, or even sign into cloud-based platforms.

“Multiple [Google Cloud Platform] products are experiencing impact due to Identity and Access Management Service Issue,” read an official Google update.

Cloudflare added: “We are aware of the deep impact this outage has caused and are working with all hands on deck to restore services as quickly as possible.”

By late afternoon Pacific Time, Cloudflare declared full service restoration, while Google continued rolling out regional fixes.

Community Reaction: Reddit Users Weigh In

Over on Reddit’s r/technology thread, users were quick to respond with both frustration and insight:

  • u/TechSnark42: “When Google Cloud, AWS, and Cloudflare all hiccup at once, it’s like watching the internet have a heart attack in real time.”

  • u/CyberDuck9000: “We need more decentralisation. The fact that three companies basically run the whole internet is terrifying.”

  • u/GlitchyGuru: “Just lost access to all work tools—Gmail, Google Meet, even my project dashboards. This better not last all day.”

  • u/RandomDev_19: “Cloudflare’s KV service going down took out half of my microservices stack. Dependency hell is real.”

  • u/NeutralNetBot: “My Discord, Spotify, and Gmail all crashed in the middle of the day. It’s like a forced digital detox.”

These sentiments reflect a growing unease about the consolidation of power within a few dominant tech providers and their impact on everyday digital life.

Affected Platforms and Services

According to Downdetector data, some of the most widely impacted services included:

  • Spotify – 46,000 reports

  • Discord – 11,000 reports

  • Snapchat – 7,000 reports

  • Character.AI – 4,000 reports

  • Vimeo – 2,000 reports

Although Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure saw a surge in user-reported issues, neither platform confirmed internal disruptions on their official status dashboards.

Industry Perspective

Mehdi Daoudi, CEO of Catchpoint, weighed in on the structural implications:

“This outage impacts tens of thousands of users across a wide swath of applications. It’s a huge reminder that even hyperscalers like Google and Cloudflare are not immune to disruption.”

He added that this event should be a wake-up call for organisations to invest in resilient architecture, external observability, and distributed infrastructure.

What’s the Current Status?

  • Cloudflare reported all systems restored by 20:57 UTC and continues to monitor for sustained platform stability.

  • Google Cloud has begun recovery in us-central1 (Iowa) and other multi-region zones. Full recovery was expected within the hour but intermittent issues may persist.

For now, most users are regaining access to their applications, but the incident has once again laid bare how fragile the digital backbone of the internet truly is.

Sneha Mukherjee

I’m Sneha Mukherjee — and for the past three years, I’ve lived and breathed words. As an SEO Content Writer and Digital Marketing Specialist, I’ve helped SaaS, AI, tech, and eCommerce brands cut through the noise with search-optimised content that doesn’t just rank — it converts, builds trust, and tells a story. I’ve collaborated with global agencies, platforms like Wavel AI, and built this very website you’re on — in just four hours — to showcase the work I believe in.

But lately, I’ve found myself on the edge of something new.

I’m transitioning into bid writing — drawn by its blend of strategy, persuasion, and high-stakes storytelling. It’s a shift that feels both exciting and natural. After all, good bids, like good SEO copy, are about understanding your audience, showing impact, and crafting a clear, compelling narrative that wins.

Away from the keyboard, I’m also learning the art of photography. I’m not a pro — not yet — but I’m learning, lens by lens. I shoot with a Canon 4000D and four trusted lenses: the 18–55mm kit, a 75–300mm telephoto, a 10–18mm wide-angle, and a sharp little 24mm. I recently added a GoPro Hero 12 to my setup — perfect for Scotland’s wild weather and rugged backdrops.

I photograph wildlife and nightscapes — capturing the raw stillness of stags in the Highlands and the star-streaked skies over Glencoe. My camera is teaching me patience, detail, and how to tell a story without saying a word.

Right now, I’m open to full-time opportunities in content writing, brand storytelling, technical SEO, and bid writing — and I’m always up for creative collaborations across the UK and Europe.

If you’re looking for someone who can bring clarity to complexity — in words or through a lens — I’d love to connect.

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