BT fault causes major broadband disruption

MANY BT Broadband customers in Shetland were left disconnected from the internet for much of Tuesday afternoon due to an unspecified nationwide fault.

A BT spokesman, who himself was without broadband in the mid-afternoon, said there “appears to be some kind of nationwide fault and we’re looking into it as a matter of urgency”.

Connections began being restored in the late afternoon, and at teatime BT released the following statement.

“Large numbers of customers have been experiencing temporary issues with their broadband services this afternoon,” it read. “Customers can still receive and make calls as normal.

“We’ve been working hard to fix the issue and are glad to report that nearly every customer affected is now reconnected, approximately two hours after the problem started. We apologise to any affected customers for the inconvenience.”

The spokesman added: “There is no evidence at this stage to suggest that we were subject to a malicious attack.”

Sorry if you’re experiencing network problems. Engineers are on site now. We will keep you updated

— BT (@BTCare) February 2, 2016

Sorry to everyone having problems with BT Broadband service this afternoon. Service is being restored, we’ll keep you updated on progress

— BT (@BTCare) February 2, 2016