Global Microsoft outage disrupts offices, schools, and government services worldwide

A global Microsoft outage disrupted offices, schools, and government services across 74 countries, affecting Outlook, Teams, and Copilot. The company reported only minor progress in restoring services after more than 12 hours, with no signs of a cyberattack. The issues began on Thursday, November 12, preventing users from sending or receiving emails and accessing mailboxes. Downdetector received over 130,000 complaints about Outlook in the US at peak, with problems also impacting OpenAI and Anthropic tools. Microsoft attributed the failure to server infrastructure problems. New Zealand's immigration service suspended visa processing indefinitely, while Indian airlines IndiGo and Akasa Air reported email disruptions. Government systems in Singapore, Japan, and Australia were affected. This marks Microsoft's second major outage this year, potentially increasing pressure from European clients to reduce reliance on American IT companies.