Bug in Akamai’s DNS service takes major websites offline

Some 500 websites – including those of major companies such as Airbnb, UPS, and Fedex – went offline for up to one hour on 22 July, due to an issue experienced by Akamai’s domain name system (DNS) service. Akamai, a leading provider of content delivery network services, initially reported a problem with its Edge DNS, a service intended to ensure that websites, apps, and services run smoothly and securely. The company then explained that ‘a software configuration update triggered a bug in the DNS system, the system that directs browsers to websites. This caused a disruption impacting availability of customer websites’. The problem was fixed after Akamai rolled back the software update. The company also noted that the issue was not the result of a cyberattack.