A single fault in the cloud revealed just how connected and dependent we’ve all become and why good UX must plan for failure.
On the 20th of October 2025, a major global outage of Amazon Web Services (AWS) led to an “internet crash.” This incident sent shockwaves across the digital landscape, bringing down platforms such as Slack, Coinbase, Lloyds Banking Group, and, of course, Medium.
Not being able to publish a Medium article felt painful enough, yet for many, being locked out of their bank accounts was a nail-biting moment. The AWS outage is a stark reminder that no system is entirely safe when a single point of failure can expose millions.
The causes behind AWS’s outage
AWS, often called the “backbone of the internet,” supports essential tools like Slack, Zoom, and Office 365, as well as popular games like Fortnite and Roblox. It also powers financial services such as Coinbase and Venmo. Even the coffee we order through the Starbucks app relies on AWS technology.