Zoom is back following a major outage

Zoom suffered a major outage this afternoon, preventing users from connecting to video calls and accessing its website.
The outage started at around 2:40PM ET and lasted for nearly two hours, with some users receiving an “Unable to Connect” error message or being unable to sign in altogether.
The issue was reportedly caused by a domain registry problem, specifically a server hold on the Zoom.us domain, which made it inaccessible due to verification, fraud, or security issues.
The domain registry issue was resolved at 4:12PM ET, but it may take some time for Zoom’s services to come back online as DNS servers propagate the corrected information.
Zoom has since restored its services and thanked users for their patience and understanding, although further details on the cause of the outage remain unclear.

Zoom suffered a major outage this afternoon that prevented people from connecting to video calls and accessing its website. As shown by Cisco’s ThousandEyes platform, site connectivity dropped off at around 2:40PM ET before coming back online nearly two hours later.

Users across X posted about the outage, with some getting an “Unable to Connect” error message when entering meetings, and others unable to sign in at all. The Zoom website was also completely down, as it displayed a 502 Bad Gateway error, and its press email didn’t work either.

It’s still not clear what caused the issue, but one Reddit user, u/TastesLikeOwlbear, mentioned that the Zoom.us domain may have been in a server hold. This happens when a domain is “not activated in the DNS,” according to ICANN, making it completely inaccessible due to verification, fraud, or security issues.

As noted in the Reddit post, the domain registry issue was fixed at 4:12PM ET, but it might take some time for Zoom to come back online for everyone, as DNS servers pick up and propagate the corrected information.

“Service has now been restored after the earlier outage, and we sincerely appreciate your patience and understanding,” Zoom said in a post on X at around 5PM ET.

The Verge reached out to Zoom and GoDaddy with requests for more information but didn’t immediately hear back.

Update, April 16th: Added an update from Zoom.

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Q. When did Zoom’s major outage occur?

A. The outage occurred this afternoon, with site connectivity dropping off at around 2:40PM ET.

Q. What was the issue that caused Zoom’s website to display a 502 Bad Gateway error?

A. It is not clear what caused the issue, but one Reddit user suggested that the Zoom.us domain may have been in a server hold due to verification, fraud, or security issues.

Q. How long did it take for Zoom’s DNS servers to pick up and propagate the corrected information after the domain registry issue was fixed?

A. It is not specified how long it took for Zoom’s DNS servers to update, but it might take some time for everyone to come back online.

Q. What error message did some users receive when trying to enter meetings on Zoom?

A. Some users received an “Unable to Connect” error message when entering meetings.

Q. When was the domain registry issue fixed?

A. The domain registry issue was fixed at 4:12PM ET.

Q. How did Zoom respond to the outage?

A. Zoom posted a statement on X, saying that service has now been restored and thanking users for their patience and understanding.

Q. Did Zoom provide any further information about the cause of the outage?

A. No, The Verge reached out to Zoom and GoDaddy with requests for more information but didn’t immediately hear back.

Q. When did Zoom confirm that the outage had been resolved?

A. Zoom confirmed that the outage had been resolved in a post on X at around 5PM ET.