What is causing the AT&T outage? Affected areas and alternatives

Since 3:30 AM ET, a surge in AT&T outage reports has been published on the website Down Detector.

The site is a helpful hub when massive service interruptions occur for cellular networks, internet providers, or applications. The site uses a crowd-sourcing feature where users report the outages they are experiencing, and the data is then collated, providing a broader perspective on the impact the interruptions are having and where.

AT&T has yet to make any public statements regarding the outage and what may be causing their network to fail.

Where are the outages taking place?

In addition to the loss of mobile service and internet, some 911 dispatch offices have reported issues receiving calls, which has turned the interruption in service into a threat to public safety.

So far, Down Detector has seen the most reports from Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, Dallas, San Antonio, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Louisville, and Miami. With the cities representing seven states, the scale of the outage is of growing concern.

In addition, there are cities, such as Washington DC, where local news organizations have begun reporting on the outages that do not appear on the down detector list.

Other networks are also seeing an increase in reported outages

Of concern is that Down Detector is also seeing an uptick across cellular networks, with AT&T being the company that has seen the most significant number.

Full screen

As this story develops, we will bring you the latest on the cause of the outage and the areas that are being hit the hardest.