The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Ugandans Wednesday night took to social media to complain after they realized they could not use WhatsApp to send or receive messages.
The problem that started soon after 11pm, was first thought by many, to be a local problem. It soon turned out that it was a worldwide problem, as the messaging service was apparently facing connectivity issues.
Website DownDetector.co.uk recorded the incident, but there was no immediate response from WhatsApp officials.
From initial apprehension, the outage soon turned into a topic for jokes on other social media platforms like twitter, before it was resolved at around Thursday 1.20am. On twitter, hashtag #whatsappdown started trending.
Life without WhatsApp_ ???#whatsapp #whatsappdown pic.twitter.com/LattUwgOus
— Suresh Pilania (@suresh_pilania) May 3, 2017
More than 1 billion users
More than 1 billion people in over 180 countries use WhatsApp to stay in touch with friends and family. It is free and offers simple, secure, reliable messaging and calling, available on phones all over the world.
The name WhatsApp is a pun on the phrase What’s Up.
WhatsApp was founded by Jan Koum and Brian Acton who had previously spent 20 years combined at Yahoo. WhatsApp joined Facebook in 2014, but continues to operate as a separate app with a laser focus on building a messaging service that works fast and reliably anywhere in the world.
