Believe it or not, YouTube has been inaccessible in any corner of the world for about an hour. Among other consequences, all the sites that embed YouTube videos will load much slower and you won't be able to play the videos. OpenDNS has an explanation for this: "Youtube.com is down right now because Pakistan Telecom has decided to (accidentally probably) hijack their IP address space which means that nobody in the world can reach Youtube." The Pakistani government blocked the access to YouTube "because of content deemed offensive to Islam".
If you know more about this, tell us in the comments.
Update: the site seems to be back.
Didn't they announce that there would be a scheduled downtime?
ReplyDeleteThis report says that Pakistan has blocked Youtube for blasphemous content.
ReplyDeleteSince when does Pakistan have control of teh internets?
ReplyDeletebut why it is down all over the world if it is blocked by Pakistan Govt.
ReplyDeleteIf its so easy to hijack an entire address space, then by now there would've been millions of website downtimes.
ReplyDeleteHell, if they want to block youtube for their country it's fine but you don't have to restrict the rest of the world's access.
ReplyDeletePlease note the word: accidentally. (Even though i still cant really see how is it possible.)
ReplyDeleteQuote: Hell, if they want to block youtube for their country it's fine but you don't have to restrict the rest of the world's access.
ReplyDeleteThen why again doesn't wikileaks.org doesn't resolve to me? Last time I checked, I was in Italy, not in USA.
Please note I'm not defending Pakistan's actions here.
Oh yeah, this really instills confidence in the sytem that seeks to host my medical records and other personal info. "for my convenience"...
ReplyDeleteIt is actually not too difficult, if the downstream ISP isn't filtering properly. If YouTube's IP space is only a few netblocks, one can announce them very specifically (perhaps as individual "class C" or /24 routes), and those routes will supercede the less specific announcement (as a single aggregate block). Typically, though, the world is protected from this behavior (whether intentional or otherwise) by filters at the ISP level. Apparently the Pakistani entity that made the announcement is connected well enough that filters were not in place to protect the rest of the world from propagating their "black hole" announcement...
ReplyDeleteI didn't understand any of this yesterday, but from my reading today, here's my analogy that may help other people. People that know better, please correct me if needed.
ReplyDeletePretend you're going to the movies to see "Superbad". But suppose that just before you got there, some guy named Pak decides to open up his own ticket line, and he put a sign up that said "Buy Superbad tickets here". Since that's what you want to see, you go wait in his line. Well, it turns out that Pak thinks "Superbad" is not an appropriate movie, so he sells you a bogus ticket. Then when you try to go into the theater, you're denied access. So Pak shut down access to "Superbad" by creating his own line. Eventually the movie theater would catch on that he's doing it and put a sign up saying to ignore his line.
Hopefully that captured the issue without being too goofy. I read http://www.renesys.com/blog/2008/02/pakistan_hijacks_youtube_1.shtml for details and had to google for terms I didn't know.
Does Google have a legal recourse here? I mean, if Comcast did this, I assume they could have their pants sued off. I'm less clear on international law, especially when governments are involved.
ReplyDeleteThe 'net' is not 'secure' by any stretch from 'disruption', man-made or natural. Remember those 'cables' knocked out a week or so ago that knocked out the internet in Iran? It's kinda naive of 'us' to think there aren't greater and powerful forces at work to CONTROL access and distribution. Honest fellas. Think about it.
ReplyDeleteIt's essentially like 'accidentally' hijacking an area code to route it to somewhere else instead. This probably can happen in the telephone world, but there are lots of safeguards in place to prevent it. Also, the telephone world is strictly divided up by border so there's easy to make 'zones', this same division doesn't exist on the internet. Just like aircraft manufacturers say after an accident is due to the operator's problem:
ReplyDelete"Carrier procedures require more scrutiny".
youtube had a scheduled downtime. it was clearly posted on their posted on their website all day prior. I would appreciate if you would amend your blog to represent this. The fact that such an absurd idea as Pakistan blocking youtube was even considered makes me seriously question if I want to continue subscribing to this website.
ReplyDeleteNo, there wasn't any scheduled downtime. These are announced beforehand and you'll still be able to access the homepage. From BBC:
ReplyDelete<< The ban was instigated by Pakistan on Friday. At the time, the BBC News website's technology editor, Darren Waters, said that to block citizens from accessing YouTube it was believed Pakistan Telecom "hijacked" the web server address of the popular video site.
Those details were then passed on to the country's internet service providers so that anyone in Pakistan attempting to go to YouTube was instead re-directed to a different address.
But the details of the "hijack" were leaked out into the wider internet by Hong-Kong based provider PCCW and as a result YouTube was mistakenly blocked by other ISPs around the world.
The block on the servers was lifted once PCCW had been told of the issue by YouTube engineers.
A statement from Google said that the problems lasted for "about two hours".
"Traffic to YouTube was routed according to erroneous internet protocols, and many users around the world could not access our site," it said.
A leading net professional told BBC News: "This was probably a simple mistake by an engineer at Pakistan Telecom. There's nothing to suggest this was malicious." >>
Dude, this date is April 30th, 2008 and i think YouTube is down again, beucase neither of my two PCs can load it
ReplyDeleteYoutube http and ftp down this morning (May 3rd, 8:50 am, DT) from here too
ReplyDeleteit's not there right now either.
ReplyDeleteToday is May 3rd, 2008 and it seems to be inaccessible.
ReplyDeletei think it is cos i havent been able to access it from any of my pcs either
ReplyDeleteYoutube is down again. I cannot load any videos, and no videos play on my blog either. What's this all about now?
ReplyDeleteIt is 5/2/2008.
its sat. may 3 940 am est and youtube is down!
ReplyDeleteOMG YOUTUBE IS DOWN AGAIN!
ReplyDeleteNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
I cannot access youtube, I'm located in mexico.
ReplyDeleteMay 3rd 14:15 to current youtube down, google ip aggress and type that in it goes to youtube but all videos and most content missing no access to account section and fails to read cookie detailing logged in info.
ReplyDeleteRight now, May 3rd, 2008. I can't reach youtube.com. For several hours.
ReplyDeleteYoutube is down again!!!
ReplyDeleteYoutube is down...
ReplyDeleteIts back on!
ReplyDeleteStill down. =(
ReplyDelete@ all the anonymous people above:
ReplyDeleteIf you bother to announce that YouTube is down for you, can you at least mention your location?
Down. Washington, D.C. metropolitan area (Maryland).
ReplyDeleteYoutube is down in White Plains, New York @ 4:08 pm
ReplyDeleteAnyone else having a problem with youtube today (June 4th, JAPAN time)? Every time I try to go to the US URL, it redirects to jp.youtube ... and says:
ReplyDeleteThe page isn't redirecting properly
Firefox has detected that the server is redirecting the request for this address in a way that will never complete.
* This problem can sometimes be caused by disabling or refusing to accept
cookies.
I deleted all cookies and told FF to allow until closed...
Any ideas?
down right now for over 20 mins, cant reach it on any proxies either.
ReplyDeleteDown again. Buttoning down the free speech hatches. Alien info getting out.
ReplyDeleteAustralia Sydney.
you tube is down agin
ReplyDeleteyoutube down. july 31 5am PST USA
ReplyDeleteTry this...
ReplyDeletehttp://m.youtube.com/
youtube is down for me right now...I think it is down right now...
ReplyDeleteYeah it's down for me now also..
ReplyDeletei cant get on youtube!!!!! i keep getting bad request 400....... apache server 80 & something about cookies.
ReplyDeletesame here!
ReplyDeleteIt's down today too.. I was on yesterday (on a different computer) and today it isn't working..
ReplyDeleteWell...
This Sucks.
still down! 11/6/08
ReplyDeleteYoutube is STILL down!
ReplyDelete11/08/08
I can't get on youtube either: 11/10/08 12:31
ReplyDeleteYoutube is still dead for me every Australian night!
ReplyDeleteGoogle & youtube have been down for at least an hour here(west coast of Canada).
ReplyDeleteYoutube
ReplyDeleteThe website cannot display the page
HTTP 500
Most likely causes:
The website is under maintenance.
The website has a programming error.
What you can try:
Refresh the page.
Go back to the previous page.
More information
This error (HTTP 500 Internal Server Error) means that the website you are visiting had a server problem which prevented the webpage from displaying.
For more information about HTTP errors, see Help.
afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5io-SE_bmENEzM46rwdVuDt9iK5zg
ReplyDeletePakistan blocks YouTube for 'blasphemous' content: officials
One major service provider, Micronet, said in an email to subscribers that the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority had directed all ISPs to block access to YouTube "for containing blasphemous web content/movies."
"Meanwhile Internet users can write to YouTube.com to remove the objectionable web content/movies because this removal would enable the authorities to order un-blocking of this website," the email said.
YouTube will go down for days and possibly weeks by the end of this year 2008. A new virus/worm is being created which will unleash the largest DoS attack on an internet company ever seen. The worm will contain a replication-mutation algorithm which will make it impossible to contain.
ReplyDeleteMy normal computer goes in, but the sound stopped working for that computer. Now I am left with my laptop and it can't go on youtube! http 500 internal server error. GRRRR!!!
ReplyDeleteYOUTUBE IS UP!!!
ReplyDeleteYOUTUBE IS DOWN!!!
ReplyDeleteuhh youtube is down!!!!!!!!!! 400 sever error!!
ReplyDeleteInternet Explorer cannot display the webpage
ReplyDeleteMost likely causes:
You are not connected to the Internet.
The website is encountering problems.
There might be a typing error in the address.
What you can try:
Diagnose Connection Problems
More information
This problem can be caused by a variety of issues, including:
Internet connectivity has been lost.
The website is temporarily unavailable.
The Domain Name Server (DNS) is not reachable.
The Domain Name Server (DNS) does not have a listing for the website's domain.
If this is an HTTPS (secure) address, click Tools, click Internet Options, click Advanced, and check to be sure the SSL and TLS protocols are enabled under the security section.
For offline users
You can still view subscribed feeds and some recently viewed webpages.
To view subscribed feeds
Click the Favorites Center button , click Feeds, and then click the feed you want to view.
To view recently visited webpages (might not work on all pages)
Click Tools , and then click Work Offline.
Click the Favorites Center button , click History, and then click the page you want to view.
I believe that this is bogus
ReplyDeleteIt appears to be down again. :-(
ReplyDeleteIt's down in Egypt
ReplyDelete4:28 AM
It's down in the UAE
ReplyDeleteWell I Love Youtube But The Only thing is it doesnt work on mine i go on it and it says Internal Sever Error And It Keeps Doing That! And I Cant Get On To It I Think Its Virus On My Computer because last week My Mum Fixed my computer Took Al the Viruses Off It And Then Youtube Worked! Now I Must Off got More Some How Properly From My msn When People Send You Virus Stuff I Dont Delet Them Or It Could Be Anything Else I Download So Every Just Warning You Dont DownLoad To Much Stuff And Be CareFull It Might Crash Ur Computer!
ReplyDeleteyoutube has got everyone fooled. Im more than sure that this is due to the fact that this large website has generated more traffic than ever before once linked with Google. With that being said, who really runs google.com? I think its safe to say that the source lies within google and not youtube, this is out of reach on any normal humans control. Trying to long on to youtube and being re routed to a url that doesnt correspond with the correct url of youtube. Got damn people wtf is going on with youtube, ever since they linked with google shit has gone to the pits for them. Oh well fuck youtube there are pleanty of web sites to watch videos, youtube is out the game!
ReplyDeleteOh it's back up now...
ReplyDeleteDAMN YOU GOOGLE!
Down again ... 3rd feb - Uk (England)
ReplyDeletePerson abouve it back up :P
ReplyDeleteDonw for 2 hours now
ReplyDeleteFECK! It's down again, and (this is superlol), it's exactly one year between this article and now. LOLPARTEY! D:
ReplyDeleteit's down. the page takes extremly long to load, and there is a html string at the top of the page when it does load. No videos can be played/
ReplyDeleteYoutube is down because it takes to long to load a video. I watched jkl productions and jon and katie thought youtube froze up for some reason and did not watch viseos or check to see their comments. They played a game of catch for a while.
ReplyDeletei dont know if youtube is down or what. last night i was watching a funny video on youtube but after clicking the next video, it didnt showed the site any more. i cant access youtube with its direct URL but when i type the IP of youtube (208.65.153.253) it showed me the site but cant play videos. and when i used proxy server it also showed the site but same thing, cant play videos. ive already updated my flash player and java, but same thing happened. ive tried to disable components on services and startup at msconfig that might be blocking the site, but still failed to access it. tried various browsers like IE, FF, OPERA etc. but still cant access it. tried putting youtube on the exceptions of IE and FF, still failed to access. tried using other computer, still failed to access youtube. tried resetting my pc, still failed to access. question is.. why cant i access youtube on its direct url but can be accessed on its IP and using proxy but failed to view the videos? where could be the problem?
ReplyDeleteI am From the Netherlands, close to Amsterdam
ReplyDeleteits here 12.30 pm and youtube is down for like 14 hours now
here in Dublin 2009 march 24 - down for over an hour now
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteYouTube is down again - exactly a year later =(
ReplyDeleteYoutube is down again !!!
ReplyDeleteYou tube is down again in India.
ReplyDeleteYouTube is down in America also. :(
ReplyDeleteIt still doesn't work for me... (in Washington, USA)...
ReplyDeleteHELP!
The 'net' is not 'secure' by any stretch from 'disruption', man-made or natural. Remember those 'cables' knocked out a week or so ago that knocked out the internet in Iran? It's kinda naive of 'us' to think there aren't greater and powerful forces at work to CONTROL access and distribution. Honest fellas. Think about it.
ReplyDeleteYeah, Jesus doesn't want us to watch youtube, you're a tool bro.
Youtube is down AGAIN in California
ReplyDeleteYoutube is offline here in Wisconsin too.
ReplyDeleteWhere's Al Gore when you need him? He invented the internet so he must know a solution.
ReplyDeleteMy Youtube is still down at 5:03pm eastern.
also here in mexico there was a video mocking the government of a state governor,and the mexican electoral institute(president)did not like it at all,and also the video of the guatemalan lawyer that was murdered.,maybe the fascists are realizing youtube is opening peoples eyes in a way.
ReplyDeleteyoutube still isint working
ReplyDeleteIt's down AGAIN! New Zealand - 11 PM for me. I'm at the date line.
ReplyDeleteSame here. US East Cost.
ReplyDeleteyoutube ain't working here neither! El Salvador 22:41 GMT -06
ReplyDeleteSame, its down. Wisconsin United States, 11:44pm.
ReplyDeleteYou tube is down again.............Anyone know the scoop?
ReplyDeleteDown Now in Portugal
ReplyDeleteAlso down in the UK
ReplyDeleteYesterday I was having problems logging in. I thought they where doing site maintaince, but today all I get is a Google Server Error. Looks like they really screwed something up or a mass virus got into there servers...
ReplyDeleteyoutube is now down in uk
ReplyDeletedown in austria
ReplyDeleteAHAHAH!!! I finally brought down Youtube with my never ending replay of "Badger Badger Badger!!"
ReplyDeletedown in pakistan right now :S
ReplyDeleteDOWN IN GERMANY
ReplyDeleteDown in US
ReplyDeletedown in canada june 4, 4 pm EST
ReplyDeletedown in Belgium
ReplyDeleteDown in Amsterdam!
ReplyDeleteDown in Greece
ReplyDeleteDown in USA
ReplyDeleteYoutube is down in USA ritenow June 12 2009
ReplyDeleteDown in Qatar.
ReplyDeletedown in jamaica?
ReplyDelete**** Youtube is down again..!!
ReplyDeleteYoutube is down again in USA. What is going on? This is very bad
ReplyDeletedown in the UK too :(
ReplyDeleteits back up again in the uk
ReplyDeletedown in the uk again
ReplyDeleteDown for a few hours now in the U.S.
ReplyDeletedown for the past 3 days in the USA.
ReplyDeleteYOUTUBE HAS JUST CLOSED AGAIN... JULY 08, 09 FOR MAINTENANCE... COME SEE MY CHANNEL fOR AWESOME ELECTRIC BIKES! YOUTUBE/LUC59457
ReplyDeleteits down... july 8, 2009... HI MOm
ReplyDeleteIts down november 8 2009.. hi mom
ReplyDelete