Microsoft outage disrupts Outlook, Teams, and services in 74 countries

Microsoft's Outlook email service has been down since late Thursday, disrupting businesses and government agencies across 74 countries and territories. The company confirmed Friday the outage was caused by heavy load on its infrastructure, not malicious activity. Other Microsoft services, including Teams and Copilot, have also been affected. Microsoft said it has made progress restoring services, with mailbox access and delayed email processing improving, though intermittent issues may continue. Rail operators in Germany, Canada, and the UK warned passengers about inaccessible train tickets. Public services have been impacted, including the UK's National Health Service, which faces a backlog in emergency call handling. Euronext advised companies to use telephones, and French municipalities reported email system failures. Experts noted the outage highlights vulnerabilities in interconnected global systems.