The popular messaging platform WhatsApp experienced a partial outage on Saturday evening following a major disruption in Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services. Several users were unable to send messages, update statuses, or access the app.
According to outage tracking site Downdetector, over 460 users complained of issues with WhatsApp around 5:30 PM. About 81% of complaints were related to message delivery failures. Many users said they faced problems in updating their status or logging into the app.
WhatsApp faced a similar disruption earlier this year on February 28, when over 5,000 users worldwide reported problem in sending messages. The messaging giant, owned by Meta, has not yet issued an official statement in this connection.
UPI platforms experienced outages
Earlier on the same day, many UPI platforms also experienced outages, affecting users across major digital payment apps such as Google Pay, PhonePe, and Paytm.
Digital payment service through Unified Payments Interface (UPI) was restored for most users on Saturday and started working as before. Earlier, many UPI users across the country were facing problems with this service for some time.
Although the National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) has not yet confirmed the restoration of UPI service, users in Delhi-NCR have reported successful digital payments through smartphone apps. Earlier in the afternoon, digital services were disrupted on many online payment platforms across the country, causing problems in shopping, bill payments and business transactions.
Bank-based UPI apps were also impacted, causing major inconvenience for both individual users and businesses. According to Downdetector, more than 3,000 people in India reported problems completing transactions through UPI.
This marks the third UPI outage in the country within a span of 30 days, raising concerns over the reliability of digital payment infrastructure.
