Microsoft’s Azure cloud services have been disrupted by undersea cable cuts in the Red Sea, the US tech giant says.
The company said Azure users would experience delays because of problems with internet traffic moving through the Middle East. Azure is among the world’s leading cloud computing platforms.
Microsoft did not explain what might have caused the cuts to the undersea cables. It added that it had rerouted traffic through other paths.
Over the weekend, there were other reports suggesting that undersea cable cuts had affected the United Arab Emirates and countries in Asia.
An update posted on the Microsoft website on Saturday said that Azure traffic going through the Middle East “may experience increased latency due to undersea fibre cuts in the Red Sea”.
It stressed that traffic “that does not traverse through the Middle East is not impacted”.
Cables laid on the ocean floor transmit data between continents and are often described as the backbone of the internet.
On Saturday, NetBlocks, an organisation that monitors internet access, said a series of subsea cable cuts in the Red Sea had affected internet services in several countries, including India and Pakistan.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Company said in a post on X that the cable cuts occurred in waters near the Saudi city of Jeddah and warned that internet services could be affected during peak hours.
On Sunday, NetBlocks said services were also disrupted in the United Arab Emirates.
Undersea cables can be damaged by anchors dropped by ships but can also be targeted in attacks.
In February 2024, several communications cables in the Red Sea were cut, affecting data traffic between Asia and Europe.
The incident happened about a month after Yemen’s internationally recognised government warned that the Iran-backed Houthi movement might sabotage the undersea cables in addition to attacking ships. The Houthis denied that they had targeted cables.
In the Baltic Sea, a series of undersea cables and gas pipelines have been damaged in suspected attacks since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Earlier this year, Swedish authorities seized a ship suspected of damaging a cable running under the Baltic Sea to Latvia. Prosecutors said an initial investigation pointed to sabotage.