Google Cloud services are back online after a major outage on June 12 that caused widespread disruption to many of its platforms. According to Google, the issue was caused by a failure in its identity and access management (IAM) system.
The outage made several Google services — including Gmail, Google Drive, Calendar, Search, Meet, and Google Lens — temporarily unavailable. It also impacted third-party apps like Spotify and Discord, which rely on Google Cloud for backend services.
The issue started in the early hours of the day and spread quickly. Users around the world reported problems, with tens of thousands of complaints recorded on platforms that monitor online service outages. Many people and businesses were unable to work or communicate, as these services are critical for daily operations.
What Caused the Outage?
Google explained that the incident was caused by a problem with IAM, the system that manages who can access what in Google’s services. A misconfiguration in this system led to a chain reaction that shut down access to multiple services.
“Our engineers identified the root cause and quickly took steps to fix the problem,” Google said in an official update.
After applying fixes across its systems, Google confirmed that all services had been restored. “All services are fully recovered from the issue. We’ll release a full report after completing our internal investigation. Thank you for your patience,” the company said.
Why It Matters
This outage shows how much people and businesses depend on a few major tech providers for communication, collaboration, and entertainment. It also highlights the importance of having strong backup systems and quick response plans to handle unexpected issues like this.
Google said it is still investigating the full cause of the outage. Once done, the company will share a detailed explanation of what went wrong and what steps it’s taking to prevent similar incidents in the future. Their engineers are currently reviewing all technical aspects to build better protection against such failures.
Though services are now back online, the incident serves as a reminder of the risks that come with relying heavily on cloud-based platforms. As technology continues to evolve, experts say companies will need to invest more in resilience and disaster recovery planning to avoid major disruptions.