Global Microsoft outage leaves Dutch users without email

Microsoft's global software outage, affecting popular email and communication tools like Outlook and Teams, began on Thursday evening. The company attributes the disruption to an "increased load" on its infrastructure, with some servers unexpectedly going offline, but denies any involvement in a cyberattack. Hundreds of millions of users worldwide rely on these apps for their daily work, potentially causing billions of dollars in losses, according to a BBC tech analyst.

Dutch users of Outlook, Teams, and Microsoft 365 faced issues on Friday morning, with thousands of complaints logged by the end of the day. Educational institutions also reported disruptions, with the University of Twente warning of email delays. Regional broadcasters faced difficulties receiving emails, according to ANP. Microsoft reported "positive results" by 8.45am Dutch time, but acknowledged that disruptions continued.

The BBC estimates the outage to be the "most severe technology outage in history." DutchNews, a free online news service, faced its own challenges as it could not provide its usual content due to the widespread outage.