what is aws outage

An AWS outage refers to a disruption or failure in Amazon Web Services' cloud infrastructure that impacts the availability and functionality of numerous websites, applications, and online services relying on AWS. AWS is a major cloud computing platform hosting a wide array of services like computing resources, data storage, and database management. When an outage occurs, it can lead to increased latency, server errors, timeouts, and downtime across various AWS-hosted platforms. The recent major AWS outage on October 20, 2025, originated from the US-EAST-1 region, AWS’s oldest and largest data center cluster. This outage was primarily caused by a DNS (Domain Name System) resolution failure affecting the translation of web addresses to server IP addresses, disrupting connectivity for millions worldwide. This DNS failure caused widespread service interruptions for high-profile platforms including Amazon, Snapchat, Reddit, Roblox, Coinbase, Fortnite, and many others, as well as impacting businesses, banking institutions, and government services. The outage lasted several hours before AWS restored normal operations, but it exposed the internet's heavy reliance on a few cloud providers and the fragility of this infrastructure. AWS outages highlight the interconnectedness of today’s digital ecosystem and the significant impact when a central cloud provider experiences disruptions. These events can cause extensive service downtime for users globally and bring businesses to a halt until resolved. Despite AWS's efforts in redundancy and availability zones, outages at major centers like US-EAST-1 can have cascading effects on dependent online services. In summary, an AWS outage is a cloud infrastructure disruption affecting AWS-hosted services, causing widespread service interruptions across the internet due to the critical role AWS plays in global digital infrastructure.