If you’re trying to send a message on Instagram or Facebook this afternoon and failing, you’re not alone. The popular photo and social media app is currently facing serious issues with users being blocked from sending or reading direct messages (DMs).
The gremlins appear to have started around 11:30am BST, as angry users flooded the internet wanting to know what was going on.
Outage monitoring service Down Detector has also seen a significant increase in reports of Instagram problems, and the number is growing by the minute. At the time of writing, Down Detector’s servers had received around 2,000 reports.
Now, many are flocking to competing social platforms like X to vent their frustration over things not working.
A user called Ming simply said, “Instagram is down… I can’t message anyone,” with Sue adding, “Is it just me or is anyone else unable to message me on Instagram?” Cherry wrote, “Instagram is down right? I’m trying to reply to a direct message but it’s not sending.”
There’s currently no information on what’s causing the issue or when it’ll be fixed, but the bug is clearly affecting a large number of Instagram fans.
What are direct messages on Instagram?
As Meta explains, DMs are an easy way to communicate with other users privately.
“Instagram DMs are an in-app messaging feature that allows you to share and privately exchange texts, photos, reels, and posts with one or more people,” Meta said.
“Instagram DMs are a place to connect with friends and collaborate on common interests.”
Reactions to the outage
Many people took to other social media platforms to share their frustrations with the situation.