Page 24 - ARUBA TODAY

A24 TECHNOLOGY
Friday 15 March 2019

Facebook says outages due to 'server configuration change'

By MAE ANDERSON their end. The Q&A
AP Technology Writer has been rescheduled for
NEW YORK (AP) — Face- Monday — which the store
book went down for almost announced in a post to its
a full day across parts of Facebook page.
North America and Europe, Many users had a ready
but it's still not saying exact- outlet for their frustrations:
ly what happened. Twitter. Social media pow-
All the social network said er user U.S. Rep. Alexan-
Thursday was that the out- dria Ocasio-Cortez, for ex-
ages, which affected users ample, lamented the lack
and advertisers worldwide, of Instagram Wednesday
resulted from a "server con- evening on Twitter. "Is Insta-
figuration change." It of- gram still down? Bc after 2
fered no further details. months almost furnitureless
Facebook and its apps in DC I am trying to take
— Instagram, Facebook you all on the riveting ad-
Messenger and WhatsApp venture of getting: a chair,"
— started experiencing she tweeted with a smiley
problems midday Wednes- face emoji.
day on the U.S. East Coast. Users have learned to take
Facebook was still having social media breakdowns
sporadic issues Thursday they usually pay for ads per type of attack that hackers The Drummers Garden in stride, said Tim Bajarin,
morning. click or impression. But they use to interrupt service to a Center & Floral, a president of consultancy
Facebook did not say how lose potential customers site, but didn't provide any plant store in Mankato, Creative Strategies.
many users were affected who might have seen their other details until Thursday. Minnesota, was unable to "People have dealt with
or why the outage took so ads when the site and apps "In these situations a lack of hold a live video Q&A these types of outages for
long to fix. In a tweet about were down. Longer term, transparency is not a good on Facebook that it had some time now," he said.
24 hours after the problems Facebook's reputation with look," Ives said. "The longer planned for weeks. Cus- "While they are annoying,
began, Facebook apolo- advertisers and investors something like this lasts, the tomers and employees it has happened enough
gized and thanked people could be damaged, said more questions there are." were both confused. that a lot of people are
for their patience. It didn't Wedbush Securities man- The disruption seemed "I hope our customers aren't now conditioned to roll
elaborate on the server aging director Dan Ives. spotty, with some apps and upset that we couldn't with the punches."
change. It didn't help that it took parts of the apps working communicate with them. Steve Jones, a professor of
The outage is yet another Facebook so long to ex- for some but not others. We're not used to it being communications at the Uni-
publicity problem for a plain what was going on, While some less active users down," said Jackie Karsten, versity of Illinois at Chicago,
company already dealing he said. Facebook said may not have noticed that the marketing coordina- said the fallout might have
with privacy issues and reg- on Wednesday that the Facebook services were tor for the store. She said been far different if the
ulatory probes . problem was not related down, other frequent users two people called the outage took place ahead
The disruption isn't likely to to a "distributed denial of and advertisers keenly felt store to ask if they were do- of or during a major news
hurt advertisers much, since service" or DDoS attack, a its absence. ing something wrong on event, like an election.q

Facebook loses longtime product chief

as it revamps strategy

problems with serving as a split. his parting note.
conduit for misinformation "Most all my personal highs Like many other longtime
and vitriol. Cox, 36, worked and lows of the last de- Facebook executives, Cox
closely with Zuckerberg cade have been tied up is unlikely to ever have to
through the company's ups in the journey of this com- work again if he doesn't
and downs, having joined pany, with Mark, and with want to. He pocketed $310
up about 20 months after so many of you," Cox wrote million in gains from exercis-
Facebook was hatched in in a post. "This place will for- ing Facebook stock options
2004 in Zuckerberg's Har- ever be a part of me." from 2014 through 2017
vard dorm room. Zuckerberg said Cox first alone, according to the
Cox "is a great guy who mentioned he might leave company's filings with se-
In this Feb. 27, 2017, file photo Facebook's Chief of Product of-
ficer, Chris Cox, speaks at the first day of the social media week is someone who has al- a few years ago, but de- curities regulators.
at the Landmark centre in Lagos, Nigeria. ways tried to do good," cided to stay on after 2016 Zuckerberg also an-
said David Kirkpatrick, an as evidence emerged that nounced another de-
By MICHAEL LIEDTKE and new direction for the social author who became well Russians had manipulated parture — Chris Daniels,
RACHEL LERMAN AP Tech- network. acquainted with Cox and Facebook's services to pro- who had been oversee-
nology Writers The departure, announced Zuckerberg while writing a voke discord in the U.S. and ing Facebook's encrypted
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Thursday , follows Zuck- book about Facebook. "My influence the election won messaging service What-
Facebook is losing its prod- erberg's announcement guess is there was some sort by President Donald Trump. sApp. Daniels is leaving less
uct chief Chris Cox, a top- that Facebook will shift its of disagreement. He would "I will always appreciate his than a year after WhatsApp
ranking executive who emphasis to private mes- not be leaving at this chal- deep empathy for the peo- founder Jan Koum resigned
spent more than a decade saging over public shar- lenging time if there wasn't ple using our services and in an apparent dispute with
at the company, just a ing. The change reflects something else going on." the uplifting spirit he brings Zuckerberg over the future
week after CEO Mark Zuck- Facebook's changing au- Neither Cox nor Zuckerberg to everything he does," direction of the widely used
erberg announced a major dience and continued specified what led to their Zuckerberg said of Cox in messaging service.q