Users across Russia, primarily in Moscow and St. Petersburg, reported widespread failures of websites and online services on Tuesday. Downdetector data showed problems with providers Lovit and Rostelecom, mobile operators Megafon and Beeline, as well as Discord, Steam, Telegram and other platforms.
The cause, according to domain registrar Reg.ru, was a power supply failure at a major communications hub. An RBK source linked the problem to an accident in Moscow's Gagarinsky district, where Moscow Intercity Telephone Station No. 9 (MMTS-9, or M9) is located — Russia's largest point of inter-operator internet traffic exchange. Several floors of the station are without electricity.
Simultaneously, power went out in several districts of the capital — Gagarinsky, Danilovsky, Zamoskvorechye and Khamovniki. The Telegram channel "Ostorozhno, Moskva" reported a fire at a facility on Vavilova Street, while channel "112" reported an explosion at an electrical substation. According to SecurityLab, the problems affected the M9 data center, which hosts "the country's key network infrastructure" and the core of the MSK-IX traffic exchange point.
The press service of Moscow's City Economy Complex said the blackout was caused by a "technological switching of power supply sources" and called information about the incident's consequences unreliable. It did not specify which information it meant.