Microsoft 365 outage

Updates

1. Monitoring 14 Nov 2026, 8:22 am

   ALEXIS IT · SERVICE UPDATE 4

   Microsoft 365 outage: 8:30am Saturday update

   Microsoft says its services are broadly recovered and stable, and has named the cause: a technical fault from a network upgrade, not a cyber attack. It is still restoring service for some customers and has not yet closed the incident.

   What is new

   • Service is broadly back. Microsoft's 6:57am update says it is seeing broad recovery and stability across its services, and that it is still restoring service to its remaining customers and regions.
   • The cause was technical. Microsoft says the outage came from an issue during an earlier network capacity upgrade, which surfaced after a recent network change. It says it has addressed the underlying issue.
   • It was not a cyber attack. Microsoft states the incident was not related to cyber activity or AI agents. Its updates do not report any customer data being lost or accessed by anyone else.
   • Why it took so long. Microsoft says it brought services back gradually and checked stability at each stage.
   • Still to come. Microsoft's status page still lists the service as degraded. Its next update is due by 9:00am today, and it has promised a full report once its review is complete.

   What to do

   • Open Outlook and check it is sending and receiving. If it does not connect, close and reopen it or restart your device. Do not reset passwords or remove and re-add accounts.
   • Check what you missed. Delayed email may arrive late and out of order. Check your Outbox for anything that did not send and your calendar for invitations that arrived late. Confirm anything time critical by phone.
   • Take extra care with links and attachments in delayed email. Microsoft listed some of its email security features as affected during the outage.
   • If your email is still not working on Monday morning, call us on 07 834 2557.

   Scams will continue after service returns. Banks have warned that scammers may keep posing as Microsoft or IT support, often by phone.

   Do not give anyone your password or a sign-in code, and do not let an unexpected caller connect to your computer. If you are unsure, hang up and call us.

   We will post a final update when Microsoft closes the incident.

   Where this information comes from

   • Microsoft Service Health Status Microsoft's public status page, last updated by Microsoft at 6:57am. Checked directly at 8:20am.
   • Microsoft 365 Status on X Microsoft's official account for incident updates.
   • Stuff: Microsoft 'deeply sorry' as stability returns following outage New Zealand coverage of Microsoft's statement.
   • RTE: Microsoft says outage caused by network capacity upgrade Independent report of the cause.

   All times are New Zealand time.

2. Monitoring 14 Nov 2026, 6:46 am Edited 14 Nov 2026, 6:47 am

   Microsoft 365 outage: Saturday morning update

   Email is coming back. Microsoft reports steady recovery overnight, about 24 hours after the outage began, but it has not yet declared the incident resolved.

   STATUS

   Mostly recovered, still being monitored

   What is new

   • Recovery overnight. Microsoft says mailbox access and email delivery have improved across its regions, including Asia Pacific, and the backlog of delayed email is close to cleared.
   • Not finished yet. Microsoft's status page still lists the service as degraded. Its 5:07am update says it is working on the remaining problems and watching the service to confirm it stays stable. Some people may still be unable to connect at times.
   • Delayed email is arriving. Messages sent to you during the outage may arrive late and out of order over the weekend.
   • Still no evidence of a cyber attack. Microsoft repeats that it has no evidence of malicious activity. It has not published the root cause and has promised a full report once recovery is complete.
   • Next Microsoft update: due by 7:00am today.

   What to do

   • Open Outlook and give it time to catch up. If it does not connect, close and reopen it or restart your device. Do not reset passwords or remove and re-add accounts.
   • Check what you missed. Look through delayed email, check your Outbox for anything that did not send, and check your calendar for invitations that arrived late. Confirm anything time critical by phone.
   • Take extra care with links and attachments in delayed email.Microsoft lists some of its email security features as affected by the outage.
   • If your email is still not working on Monday morning, call us on 07 834 2557.

   Scams will continue after service returns. Banks have warned that scammers may keep posing as Microsoft or IT support, often by phone.

   Do not give anyone your password or a sign-in code, and do not let an unexpected caller connect to your computer. If you are unsure, hang up and call us.

   We will post a final update when Microsoft confirms the incident is resolved.

   Where this information comes from

   • Microsoft Service Health StatusMicrosoft's public status page, last updated by Microsoft at 5:07am. Checked directly at 6:40am.
   • Microsoft 365 Status on XMicrosoft's official account for incident updates.
   • BleepingComputer: Massive Microsoft 365 outageRunning record of Microsoft's recovery statements.
   • RNZ: Microsoft battling major Outlook outageNew Zealand coverage.

   All times are New Zealand time.

3. Identified 13 Nov 2026, 11:29 pm

   Microsoft 365 outage: 11:30pm update

   Microsoft 365 email is still disrupted, about 17 hours after the outage began. Microsoft reports gradual improvement but has not restored full service.

   STATUS

   Partly recovered, not yet resolved

   What is new

   • Recovery is progressing in stages. Microsoft says several services are improving, but performance is still up and down.
   • The problem is centred on email. Outlook on computers, the web and phones may not connect, and calendars and meeting invitations may fail.
   • Teams and files are working, according to Microsoft. That covers Teams calls, meetings and chats, and files stored in SharePoint.
   • Delayed email is being held. Microsoft has extended its holding period for delayed email to 48 hours and is giving priority to the backlog. Expect messages to arrive late and out of order when your mailbox reconnects.
   • No evidence of a cyber attack. Microsoft states it has no evidence of malicious activity. It has not confirmed the root cause and will publish a report once service is restored.
   • Next Microsoft update: due by midnight tonight.

4. Investigating 13 Nov 2026, 6:23 pm Edited 13 Nov 2026, 11:30 pm

   Microsoft 365 outage: 06:30am

   Outlook email, Teams and other Microsoft 365 services have been disrupted worldwide since about 6:30am today. The fault is inside Microsoft's own systems. It is not caused by your computers, your office network or your internet connection.

   Status

   Ongoing. Microsoft is still restoring service

   Microsoft incident references

   EX1550543 · MO1550821

   What is happening

   Microsoft has confirmed a major outage that can affect Microsoft 365 customers in any region. Businesses, councils, schools and government agencies across New Zealand are affected, along with organisations overseas.

   Microsoft says a large number of its servers stopped responding, which overloaded the servers that were still running. It has said the overload was not caused by a rise in traffic.

   Around midday Microsoft began returning servers to service. In its 1:08pm update it said some of those servers stop responding again once they start taking traffic. It is now limiting certain types of traffic to the affected systems and rebuilding some servers on an earlier software configuration to find what is triggering the fault.

   Microsoft has not given a time for full restoration and has not yet published the root cause. Please plan for disruption to continue this afternoon.

   What is affected

   Microsoft lists these services as potentially affected:

   • Outlook email and calendars (Exchange Online)
   • Microsoft Teams
   • SharePoint
   • Microsoft 365 Copilot
   • Planner and To Do
   • Universal Print
   • Intune device management
   • Defender and Purview security services

   Some of these may work while others do not, and access may come and go. That is expected while Microsoft works on its servers.

   Is this a cyber attack?

   There is no indication that it is. A Microsoft spokesperson told ABC News today there was no indication of a cyber attack, and Microsoft's incident updates describe a fault with its own servers, not malicious activity.

   Microsoft describes this as a loss of access to its services. Its updates do not report any customer data being lost or accessed by anyone else.

   Microsoft has not yet published a confirmed root cause. If that picture changes, we will update this page and contact affected customers directly.

   What you should do

   • Leave Outlook and Teams open. They reconnect on their own as service returns.
   • Do not reset passwords, remove and re-add accounts, or reinstall Outlook or Teams. It will not fix this, and it can cause extra problems once service is back.
   • Phone or text for anything urgent. Do not assume an email sent today has been delivered or read.
   • Expect email to arrive late or out of order while the backlog clears. Once you are back online, check your Outbox for anything that did not send.
   • If you cannot save to SharePoint or Teams, save a copy to your computer and upload it later.
   • Keep work on work accounts. Please do not send business or client information from personal email as a workaround.

   Watch for scams. Scammers use outages like this as cover. Be suspicious of any email, text or call about the outage that asks you to sign in, confirm your password, approve a sign-in prompt or install something.

   Do not enter your password from a link in a message, and do not approve a sign-in prompt you did not start. If you are unsure, call us before you click. Scam texts can be forwarded free to 7726 (Department of Internal Affairs).

   What Alexis IT is doing

   • We are following Microsoft's incident updates and will update this page as the situation changes.
   • There is nothing we can change in your systems to bring service back sooner. The fix has to come from Microsoft.
   • Once Microsoft confirms service is restored, we will check that email and sign-in are working normally for the customers we manage.
   • If something urgent depends on email or Teams today, call us and we will help you work around it.

   How to reach us

   Phone is the most reliable way to reach us while the outage continues.

   Contact: 07 834 2557

   Web: alexisit.co.nz

   Where this information comes from

   • Microsoft Service Health StatusMicrosoft's public status page. Checked directly at 1:10pm today.
   • Microsoft 365 Status on XMicrosoft's official account for incident updates.
   • RNZ: Global outage hits Microsoft's Outlook, 365 servicesNew Zealand impact and government response.
   • 1News: Outlook down, global outage hits Microsoft appsNew Zealand news coverage.
   • ABC News live coverageIncludes Microsoft's statement that there is no indication of a cyber attack.
   • SecurityWeek: Microsoft 365 outage disrupts Outlook, Exchange Online and TeamsSecurity industry reporting on the cause.
   • National Cyber Security Centre: report a cyber security issueWhere to report phishing and scams in New Zealand.

   
   

   All times are New Zealand time. Microsoft's information is changing through the day, so check the update time at the top of this page.