Cloudflare Reveals Global Internet Downtime Causes
Cloudflare's report highlights various reasons behind recent internet downtime worldwide, including typhoons, earthquakes, power failures, government shutdowns, and drone damage to cloud regions. The data shows that accidental and deliberate shutdowns can appear similar, with Tanzania's power blackout in 2020 mirroring its election-day shutdown in 2025. The findings underscore the fragility of global internet infrastructure.
Key points
- Cloudflare's report analyzed traffic telemetry data to identify causes of global internet downtime, including typhoons, earthquakes, power failures, and government shutdowns.
- A typhoon, two earthquakes, and a national power failure were among the reasons for internet downtime, as well as ten government shutdowns timed to school exams.
- Drone damage to an AWS region in the UAE, caused by Iranian drones, significantly affected internet traffic in the region.
- Cloudflare found that an accidental blackout and a government shutdown can appear similar in data, as seen with Tanzania's power blackout in 2020 and its election-day shutdown in 2025.
- The report highlights the fragility of global internet infrastructure, which is often treated as a utility despite being held together by a small number of critical components.
Cloudflare's latest report on global internet downtime has shed light on the various reasons behind recent outages. The data, drawn from traffic telemetry on Cloudflare Radar, reveals a complex web of causes, including natural disasters, human error, and geopolitical tensions.
One of the most striking findings is the similarity between accidental and deliberate shutdowns. Cloudflare's analysis shows that Tanzania's power blackout in 2020 looked almost identical to its election-day shutdown in 2025. This highlights the challenges of distinguishing between intentional and unintentional outages.
The report also highlights the impact of geopolitical tensions on internet traffic. The US-Iran conflict has led to drone damage to two AWS facilities in the UAE, significantly affecting internet traffic in the region. This is a stark reminder of the fragility of global internet infrastructure, which is often treated as a utility despite being held together by a small number of critical components.
As the world becomes increasingly dependent on the internet, it is essential to understand the underlying causes of downtime and develop strategies to mitigate these risks. Cloudflare's report provides valuable insights into the complex issues facing global internet infrastructure and serves as a reminder of the need for greater investment in resilience and redundancy.
Sources
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