Overview

• A major outage on May 16, 2025, disrupted Tesco's app, website, and in-store payment systems, leaving customers unable to access accounts or complete purchases.
• Over 1,500 incidents were logged on DownDetector, with issues peaking mid-afternoon, including problems with Clubcard access and online order management.
• Some stores experienced contactless payment and scanner failures, forcing customers to use cash or chip-and-pin transactions.
• Tesco acknowledged the technical issues on social media, apologized to affected customers, and confirmed by early evening that systems were fully restored.
• The outage was attributed to a software fault, with no evidence of a cyber attack, highlighting the challenges of maintaining reliable digital infrastructure.