FACEBOOK LOSES $6BILLION, APOLOGISES FOR GLOBAL SHUT DOWN
Facebook has attributed yesterday's six hour global shutdown of its platforms to a "Faulty configuration change".
The social media giant got more than one billion users on their various platforms distraught last night when their services abruptly went down without a warning.
In a statement posted on Twitter at 11.31pm, Facebook thanked millions of users impacted by the unprecedented loss of signals which lasted around six hours.
"To the huge community of people and businesses around the world who depend on us: we’re sorry,’ Facebook engineering department said in the statement.
"We have been working hard to restore access to our apps and services and are happy to report they are coming back online now. Thank you for bearing with us.’
Other apps affected by the complete shut down are WhatsApp and Instagram. It is estimated that the company lost close to $6 billion to the shut down which affected millions of users worldwide.
However, experts are of the opinion that the shut down may not be unconnected with certain legal and ethical challenges the company has faced in recent times.
On Monday, 3rd of October, a whistle blower, Francis Haugen accused Instagram of uploading contents that are inimical to the mental health of young girls. Coupled with existing accusations of user information mismanagement, especially Facebook's alleged misinformation about the infamous January 6th riots in Washington DC, the company's shares in the American stock market began to plummet considerably.
In a swift reaction then, the Vice President of Facebook's global affairs, Mr Nick Clegg had said that the "Issues are complex and not caused by technology alone".
He also said that he "Thinks it gives people comfort to assume that there must be a technological or technical explanation for the issues of political polarisation in the US".
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