McDonald's experiences tech outages worldwide, impacting some restaurants

McDonald's experienced a technology outage worldwide Friday, and patrons were not 'lovin it.

“We are aware of a technology outage, which impacted our restaurants; the issue is now being resolved," reads a statement provided to USA TODAY from McDonald's Corporation. "We thank customers for their patience and apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused."

The Chicago-based company said the outage is not related to a cyberattack. Midday Friday, the company issued a statement saying it was caused by a third-party provider during a configuration change. According to the Associated Press, the issues popped up in McDonald's locations all over the world, including in Bangkok, Milan and London, where people were able to order food again after the issues passed.

A sign on the door of a McDonald's as a person enters after earlier problems in the fast food restaurant, in Bangkok, Friday, March 15, 2024. System failures at McDonald’s have been reported worldwide, shuttering some restaurants for hours and leading to social media complaints.

Downdetector, a website that tracks outages, shows the problems started around 1 a.m. ET in the U.S., U.K. and Australia.

Complaints, questions and rumors about after McDonald's outage

Many people took to social media to share their reactions to the outage, some complaining about not being able to visit a location open 24 hours a day.

"@McDonaldsUK why can I order through the app this morning but all of my local McDonald’s are closed when they are meant to be 24 hours?!" one user posted on X.

Others joked about the cause of the issue: It the McFlurry machine? Did a vegetarian get their revenge? Were global politics to blame? (McDonald's has not commented on what caused the outage).

"Apparently McDonalds are suffering a global system outage - does this mean the McFlurry machine is finally working?," a user wrote on X.

Everyone
chasing down a KFC after hearing McDonalds is down globally with a major IT outage pic.twitter.com/iUjRYNKaIv

— *🪬* (@_______0______) March 15, 2024

Others got a hankering for the fast food, just as it went away.

"I didn’t feel like Maccas until news of the global outage. Now all I can think about is a Fillet-O-Fish," wrote another user on X, calling McDonald's its Australian nickname.

Our sincerest apologies for the inconvenience caused by the recent outage affecting McDonald's stores in New Zealand, Australia, and Japan. Rest assured, we are working diligently to address and resolve the issue promptly. Thank you for your understanding.

— McDonald's (@McDonaldsNZ_) March 15, 2024

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: McDonald's outage impacts restaurants, customers worldwide