Pakistan, Nov. 13 -- The Outlook outage affected thousands of Microsoft users across the Americas on Thursday, disrupting access to email and other Microsoft 365 services. Microsoft confirmed that users were facing difficulties accessing Exchange Online mailboxes through multiple connection options. The company said it had launched an investigation into the reported problems. However, it did not initially identify the cause of the disruption.

DownDetector, a website that tracks service interruptions, recorded a sharp increase in complaints around noon Eastern Time. More than 22,000 users had reported problems by 12:55pm ET. The number later climbed above 120,000 as the outage spread across affected areas. Reports came from major cities, ...