Thousands of users worldwide were left frustrated on May 22, 2025, as X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter and now owned by Elon Musk, suffered a major outage. This unexpected disruption prevented users from logging in, accessing their feeds, or posting updates—prompting widespread panic and speculation.
As users scrambled for answers, Elon Musk broke his silence with a dramatic claim: X was under a massive cyberattack. The outage has since become a lightning rod for debate about the platform’s resilience, Musk’s management, and whether user trust in X is slowly unraveling.
Timeline of the X Outage
According to data from Downdetector, reports of the X outage began flooding in at around 2:30 PM EDT. Within minutes, over 2,300 users had flagged issues, with the majority struggling to use the mobile app and the remainder reporting problems with the website and desktop interface.
Thankfully, the disruption lasted less than an hour, and service was gradually restored. However, the brevity of the outage didn’t stop users from demanding answers—and accountability.
Global Impact and User Frustration
The outage was not localized. From New York to New Delhi, and London to Lagos, users across the globe were impacted. According to SF Chronicle, 56% of reports concerned the X app, while 33% related to website access. The remaining 11% were miscellaneous errors affecting logins, search, and media uploads.
For many professionals, journalists, and influencers who rely on X for real-time updates and business engagement, the downtime felt like a significant disruption. Hashtags like #XDown and #TwitterCrash trended globally within minutes.
Elon Musk’s Response and Cyberattack Claims
As speculation grew, Elon Musk took to his platform to reveal a bombshell: X had been hit by a “massive cyberattack.”He claimed the breach was serious enough to have temporarily disabled access for millions and hinted that the IP addresses involved originated from the “Ukraine region.”
Musk’s exact tweet:
“X is under a massive cyberattack. The source appears to be coordinated and may involve advanced nation-state-level resources.”
While the announcement captured attention, it also raised eyebrows. Musk did not offer any technical evidence to support the claim, nor did the company release a formal cybersecurity statement.
Cybersecurity Experts Cast Doubt
Cybersecurity professionals quickly responded to Musk’s cyberattack allegations with skepticism. Nicholas Reese, a cyber operations analyst, told SF Chronicle:
“Attributing attacks to a specific country based on IP addresses is unreliable. These can be easily spoofed or routed through compromised networks.”
Others noted that the outage showed none of the hallmarks of a state-sponsored attack, which typically involve data breaches or ransomware—not temporary service crashes. Most experts suggest that the disruption was likely due to internal technical failures or misconfigurations.
History of Outages on X Under Musk
This is far from the first time X has gone dark under Elon Musk’s leadership. Since acquiring Twitter in 2022 and rebranding it to X, the platform has experienced multiple major outages, particularly during transitions involving staff layoffs and infrastructure overhauls.
In March 2025, X suffered a similar disruption, which Musk also attributed to cyberattacks—again without providing hard evidence. The pattern is beginning to concern analysts who fear that Musk’s minimalistic staffing model may be leaving the platform vulnerable to both technical glitches and real threats.
What Users Can Expect Moving Forward
Frequent outages raise serious concerns about X’s reliability as a social media and communications tool. For casual users, it’s an annoyance. For brands, governments, and emergency services that rely on X to communicate in real time, it’s a risk.
Experts suggest that unless X takes aggressive steps to fortify its infrastructure, enhance cybersecurity, and maintain transparency with users, trust in the platform will continue to erode. Users are advised to:
- Use multi-platform communication strategies
- Stay updated via independent outage trackers like Downdetector
- Back up critical content and contacts outside of X
FAQs
- Why did X crash on May 22, 2025?
- Elon Musk claimed it was due to a cyberattack, though cybersecurity experts suggest it may have been an internal technical failure.
- How long was X down?
- The outage began around 2:30 PM EDT and lasted less than an hour.
- Was this the first time X has experienced a major outage?
- No, there have been multiple outages since Elon Musk acquired and rebranded the platform.
- Is there evidence of a cyberattack?
- No official technical evidence has been released to support Musk’s cyberattack claim.
- What should users do during an X outage?
- Monitor news via reliable sources, use alternative platforms, and report issues on trackers like Downdetector.
