On May 4, 2025, Snapchat experienced a significant global outage, affecting users worldwide, including Pakistan. Major cities such as Lahore, Karachi, Rawalpindi, and Peshawar reported widespread disruptions, with users facing login issues, difficulties in sending snaps, and problems uploading content.
Extent of the Outage in Pakistan
According to reports, approximately 57% of Pakistani users were unexpectedly logged out and unable to sign back in. Around 24% faced issues sending snaps, videos, or text messages, while 18% reported problems uploading content to Stories or Spotlight. By 6:00 PM local time on May 4, 53% of users still reported inability to access the app, 28% had sharing problems, and 19% couldn’t upload content.
The duration of the outage varied, with some sources suggesting it lasted as briefly as 33 minutes, while others reported issues persisting for up to 18 hours.
VPN Workaround and Speculations
Notably, some users in Pakistan could access Snapchat by using a Virtual Private Network (VPN), leading to speculation about region-specific restrictions or network blocks. However, no official evidence from the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) or other authorities confirmed a ban. Snapchat’s significant user base in Pakistan, exceeding 30 million, further suggests that the app was not restricted by the PTA.
Potential Causes of the Outage
While Snapchat did not release an official statement explaining the cause, several potential reasons were proposed:
- Server-Side Disruption: Given the global scale of the outage, a server-side malfunction, such as overloaded servers or hardware failures, is a likely cause.
- Update-Related Glitch: The outage might be linked to recent app updates. In April 2025, Snapchat introduced a shift from a three-tab interface to a five-tab layout, merging Stories and Spotlight into a single feed. Additionally, the introduction of AI-powered features and interface redesigns may have strained the app’s infrastructure, leading to unexpected downtime.
- Region-Specific Issues: The VPN workaround reported by Pakistani users raised questions about potential region-specific restrictions or ISP-level blocks. However, the global nature of the outage and the lack of official confirmation from the PTA make a targeted ban in Pakistan unlikely.
- Cybersecurity or External Factors: While no evidence points to a cyberattack, the possibility of a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack or other malicious activity cannot be ruled out.
Snapchat outage on May 4, 2025, was a global event that significantly impacted users in Pakistan. While the exact cause remains unconfirmed, server-side disruptions or glitches from recent updates are the most likely culprits. The VPN workaround in Pakistan sparked speculation about a local ban, but no official evidence supports this. The global nature of the outage suggests a Snapchat infrastructure issue.
