AT&T experienced a network disruption on Thursday morning, affecting numerous customers nationwide and hindering their ability to make calls, send texts, and access the internet. While Verizon and T-Mobile users also reported some outages, they were comparatively less widespread. Both T-Mobile and Verizon stated that their networks remained unaffected by AT&T’s service interruption and suggested that customers reporting issues may have been attempting to reach individuals using AT&T.
In response to the situation, AT&T acknowledged the widespread outage but did not provide a specific reason for the system failure. The company issued a statement acknowledging the wireless service interruptions and assured customers that they are working urgently to restore service. AT&T recommended the use of Wi-Fi calling until the issue is resolved. While some parts of the network are starting to recover, the company has not provided a timeframe for a full restoration.
Despite facing sporadic outages in recent days, including a temporary 911 outage in certain southeastern regions, nationwide and prolonged outages are typically rare for AT&T. While the company did not officially disclose the cause of the outage, an industry source, speaking anonymously, suggested that the problem might be related to the process of peering, which involves the handoff of calls between cellular networks.
There is no indication that the outage resulted from a cyberattack or malicious activity, according to the industry source. Verizon expressed confidence that the issue affecting AT&T customers is close to being resolved. Carriers, in general, tend to be discreet about the reasons behind network outages, with factors such as construction accidents, sabotage, or problematic network updates being cited in the past.
Several local governments reported disruptions in their services due to AT&T’s outage. San Francisco’s Department of Emergency Management acknowledged that its 911 center remained operational, but many AT&T customers were unable to reach the emergency line. They advised people to use landlines or seek assistance from individuals with a different service provider to dial 911 during the outage.
