Video-Conferencing Platform Faces Widespread Disruption
Alphabet’s Google Meet experienced a significant outage on Monday, leaving more than 15,000 users in the United States unable to access the service. The disruption was first reported around 1.36pm Eastern Time, according to tracking site Downdetector, which compiles status updates from multiple sources.
The issue affected both individuals and businesses relying on Google Meet for remote meetings, online learning, and digital collaboration. Many users turned to social media to report being abruptly logged out of ongoing calls or unable to join scheduled video meetings.
As of press time, Google had not issued an official explanation or update regarding the cause of the disruption.
Concerns Over Reliability of Video Platforms
The outage has reignited concerns about the reliability of cloud-based video conferencing services, especially as companies, schools, and government agencies increasingly depend on them for daily operations. For businesses, sudden downtime can result in lost productivity, missed deadlines, and even financial costs tied to delayed negotiations or training sessions.
Experts also note that platform outages can impact trust among corporate users, many of whom invest in premium subscriptions for features such as advanced security, cloud storage, and integration with workplace tools. For educators and students, disruptions like this highlight the ongoing challenges of digital learning infrastructure.
Investigations Underway, Users Seek Updates
Google has yet to provide clarification on whether the outage was due to technical glitches, server overload, or external factors such as cyberattacks. In similar cases, the company usually issues a status update via its Workspace Status Dashboard, though no such notice had been posted at the time of reporting.
The incident comes at a time when major tech companies are under scrutiny for service stability and data protection, with competitors like Microsoft Teams and Zoom closely watched for performance lapses.
For Singapore users, no major disruptions were reported, though some expressed concern online about potential ripple effects if Google’s services in Asia were to be impacted.
With millions globally relying on video-conferencing tools daily, the latest outage underscores how vulnerable modern digital communication systems can be, and why many organisations are investing in backup platforms to avoid complete work stoppages.