AT&T apologizes for massive system failure but rules out cyber attack

Customers were left in the dark as phone networks across the US went offline

AT&T users facing cell service outages nationwide

AT&T has said that a massive outage that left people unable to make calls – including to 911 – was not caused by a cyber attack.

The provider said thew outage was caused by “the application and execution of an incorrect process” during network expansion. “We are continuing our assessment of today’s outage to ensure we keep delivering the service that our customers deserve,” the statement read.

The White House echoed this saying that there was no evidence the outage was caused by a cyber attack

According to CNN, John Kirby, a National Security spokesman, said the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI are looking into the Thursday incident and contacting partners to “see what we can do from a federal perspective to lend a hand to their investigative efforts to figure out what happened there.”

Still, he said, officials are unsure about what caused the widespread outage.

“The bottom line is we don’t have all the answers to that. I mean, this just happened earlier today. And so we’re working very hard to see if we can get to the ground truth of exactly what happened.”

Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is now working with AT&T to get to the root of the issue.

“CISA is aware of the reports and we are working closely with AT&T to understand the cause of the outage and its impacts, and stand ready to offer any assistance needed,” the agency’s Executive Assistant Director for Cybersecurity, Eric Goldstein, said in a statement.

The outage, which began early on Thursday, led to warnings from emergency services and advice from companies to get around the issue.

AT&T has around 250 million customers, making it the US’s biggest phone network by some distance. The company said all its entire network had been restored around 3pm ET.

Follow for all the latest on the outage below.

Key Points

• AT&T says outage caused by ‘incorrect process’ not cyber attack
• AT&T says its entire network has been restored after an hours-long outage
• FCC says it’s actively investigating the outage
• Residents in the following cities reported the most outages

[23 February 2024 16:16 · Andrew Griffin]

‘Landlines are languishing'

Is this week’s AT&T outage a reminder of the importance of landlines? Fewer and fewer people have them – but those that do probably felt happy about it when the cellular service went down.

That’s the argument of this piece, about how the US fell out of love with the cord.