Google appeared to suffer a major outage on Tuesday, May 12, with hundreds of users reporting difficulties accessing the platform and encountering internal server errors across both mobile devices and desktop computers.
The disruption chiefly affected Google Search, where many users said results failed to load or pages refused to refresh.
A pop-up message displayed to several users read, "Server Error. We're sorry but it appears that there has been an internal server error while processing your request. Our engineers have been notified and are working to resolve the issue. Please try again later."
The issue was identified as a '500 Internal Server Error', which generally indicates a server-side problem rather than an issue with users' devices or internet connections. The error typically occurs when communication between a user's browser and the company's servers is interrupted due to technical problems in the backend infrastructure.
More than 200 users initially logged complaints on outage-tracking service Downdetector after being unable to access Google's search engine, with disruptions first reported at 9:48 am IST. By 10:18 am, Downdetector, which monitors online service interruptions, had already received more than 2,000 reports.
The number of reports surged sharply on Tuesday morning, rising to more than 3,300 by around 10:23 am IST.
According to the platform's data, about 57% of those reports were linked to problems with Search, while 28% said content was failing to load. A further 11% highlighted issues with the website itself.
Users take to social media
The disruption quickly sparked discussion online as affected users turned to other platforms to confirm whether the outage was widespread. On X, one user wrote, "Never seen google search down. What's happening?", reflecting the unusual nature of a service that seldom faces extended downtime.
Another user shared their frustration and confusion, posting: "Is Google down, of all things? For someone like me who aimlessly surfs the net via Google, this hits hard. That split second when I thought it was ahamo again? That's our little secret. Lol"
A third user added a touch of humour to the situation, saying: "GOOGLE IS DOWN. The internet is experiencing an unscheduled moment of silence."
Issue detected across devices
Reports indicated that the outage was not limited to a specific device type, with users on both smartphones and computers experiencing identical error messages. The scale of the disruption led many to speculate about a system-wide issue.
Google has not yet issued an official statement on the cause or duration of the outage.
What to do if Google Search is not working?
If Google Search stops loading or fails to show results, users can try a few basic fixes. Switching to another browser, clearing cached data and cookies, or moving between Wi-Fi and mobile data may help determine whether the issue is linked to a local connection. In the meantime, other search engines such as Bing, DuckDuckGo and Yahoo Search remain available as temporary alternatives. Most disruptions to Google services are typically resolved within minutes or a few hours without any action required from users.
Earlier disruptions
Earlier this year, multiple major tech platforms, including several AI tools, faced significant service interruptions. In March, China's widely used AI chatbot DeepSeek experienced one of its most severe outages to date, remaining unavailable for more than seven hours overnight.
During the same period, Instagram users also encountered extensive disruptions. Many reported that direct messages were not loading and chat themes had vanished. Complaints on Instagram's subreddit and other social platforms highlighted problems with using the search function and accessing contact lists.
In February, YouTube was hit by a worldwide outage as well. The company later confirmed that the platform was back online, with TeamYouTube announcing on X that the issue had been reso