WhatsApp down? Users in India and worldwide face disruption

WhatsApp users in India and around the world on Saturday (April 12) reported issues in sending messages using the instant messaging platform.

Downdetector showed hundreds of users from India and the US reported issues starting around 7:40 pm IST.

According to Downdetector, 89 per cent of users in both regions reported trouble sending messages. Around 8–9 per cent had issues with the app itself, and 2–3 per cent faced problems with receiving messages or using voice calls. While this points to a fairly widespread partial outage, it is not as massive as some of the earlier disruptions seen on Meta platforms.

There was no immediate response from WhatsApp regarding the outage.

Earlier, WhatsApp faced another outage on February 28 this year. According to Downdetector, thousands of users reported that their messages weren’t getting delivered. Over 5,000 reports came in from around the globe during the disruption.

In India alone, more than 530 million people use WhatsApp. Globally, the app connects nearly 3 billion users — so even a short glitch makes a big noise.

For Indian users, Saturday has been full of tech disruptions. Earlier in the day, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), one of the world’s fastest payment systems, faced another major outage, marking the third such disruption within a month.

UPI-maker the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) later acknowledged the reports and cited “intermittent technical issues” for the outage. In its statement, the NPCI said it was working to resolve the issue.

UPI now accounts for 65 per cent of all digital transactions in India — making it a true game-changer in the world of payments.

While UPI is the go-to option for small to medium purchases (like tea, groceries, or your go-to street momo guy), credit cards and EMIs are still popular for big-ticket expenses.

The one-two punch of WhatsApp going down and UPI services facing a hiccup on the same day left users seriously frustrated. People found themselves stuck—unable to message, unable to pay. It was like getting locked out of both your phone and your wallet at once. Not exactly a smooth day for digital life