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By Marni Rose McFall
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A tech outage at Capital One has left some users unable to access their direct deposits, impacting access to paychecks across the U.S.
Newsweek has reached out to Capital One via email outside of normal working hours for comment.
Why It Matters
Capital One operates in the U.S, Canada and the U.K. According to their website, they have over 100 million customers. Many customers may face problems paying their bills and purchasing essential items, if they can't access their paychecks or other deposits.
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What To Know
According to Down Detector, which is an online service that tracks tech outages, over 2,000 people reported issues with the Capital One banking system by the morning of Thursday January 16.
The problem had slightly decreased by late that afternoon, but there were still over 1,700 outage reports by 4:10 p.m. Eastern Time.
Many of Capital One's customers have taken to social media in order to express their concerns and discontent about the issue.
Multiple posts are appearing each minute, reflecting the volume of people waiting for their direct deposits and experiencing issues with the bank. Many users have pledged to close their accounts with the bank once the issue is resolved.
What Happened At Capital One?
The cause of the issue is unclear. Just before noon on Thursday, January 16, Capital One said in a statement: "We are experiencing a technical issue with a third-party vendor that is temporarily impacting some account services, deposits, and payment processing for portions of our consumer, small business, and commercial bank."
When Will The Technical Issues Be Fixed?
It is currently not clear when the technical issues will be fixed, and though reports of the outage have decreased, Capital One customers are continuing to post online that they have not received their direct debits, reflecting that the technical issues are persisting.
How Could The Outage Affect U.S. Paychecks?
The outage could mean that there are delays in Americans receiving their paychecks.
Customers took to social media to say they were counting on money from deposits, and when these didn't clear, they were unsure how they would be able to cover bills and other essential living expenses.
What People Are Saying
One Capital One customer wrote on social media: "This is unacceptable. Millions of people didn't receive their direct deposits today due to a glitch on your end, yet there's been no communication via email or social media. Consider this my last day as your customer."
Another wrote: "Finally got off the phone with @CapitalOne, and rep that answered got an attitude off the jump because she's tired of the same call about direct deposits. Yeah we need to go ahead and cancel #CapitalOne some of us need them deposits to live."
Responding to a user complaint online, a Capital One representative wrote on X: "We're currently experiencing a tech outage impacting a variety of functions. We apologize for the trouble, and while we don't have an ETA to dish out, we appreciate your patience as we work to restore functionality."
A Capital One spokesperson, in an email shared with Newsweek: "Due to a technical issue experienced by a third-party vendor, some account services, deposits, and payment processing for portions of our consumer, small business, and commercial bank have been temporarily impacted. We are working closely with the vendor to resolve the issue. System restoration is underway but not yet fully operational. We apologize to our customers for this continued inconvenience."
What Happens Next
Social media users have highlighted that as Monday January 20 is Martin Luther King Day, a federal holiday when banks will be closed, meaning that there could be further delays to customers receiving their direct debits.
Update 1/17/25, 9:55 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from a spokesperson for Capital One.
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