WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook down: Thousands of users report services out of action tonight

WHATSAPP, Instagram and Facebook Messenger are down - leaving thousands of users unable to use the apps. 

According to DownDetector, over 20,000 Instagram users and 9,000 WhatsApp users reported an outage just after 5.20pm. 

On Instagram, around 77 per cent of users reported not being able to access their newsfeed. 

Users were met with a server error message on the webpage, while those accessing through the app were unable to refresh their feeds.

And on WhatsApp, 71 per cent of users struggled to get a connection while 26 per cent were unable to send or receive messages.  

Users on WhatsApp reported seeing a 'Connecting' message displayed at the top of the screen as they tried to load conversations.

Meanwhile, 5,000 Facebook Messenger users reported an outage at 5.32pm.

All three apps are owned by the Facebook company - and it is unclear what has caused the outage.

Brits shared their experience of the outage on DownDetector, with one writing: "I was in the middle of a conversation with my Mrs and messenger went down its getting worse and worse."

Facebook later said a "technical issue" had been fixed and all four services were restored.