NeoBytes :) is an occasional feature that takes a step back from the big headlines, to take a look at what else is happening in the vast, scary expanse of the tech world - often with a cynical eye, always with a dose of humour.
What happens when you accidentally send an innocent email to tens of thousands of people, and they start replying to your message, unwittingly including the same number of contacts?
A guy named Vince, a Thomson Reuters employee, hailing all the way from the Philippine islands, unintentionally sent a message to 33,000 other workers of the company. The message allegedly contained a mere inquiry to the company"s technical team, asking about a reconnection of a phone line. But instead of mailing it to the correct recipients, Vince sent it to the wrong group, which led to the mass distribution of emails.
Employees of the company around the world received the said message, including its news division. Of course, with the confusion going on, many people replied to the message, yet unmindfully using the "Reply All" button. This worsened the issue, with people replying to all, to tell them to stop replying to all. The "replyallcalypse" then gave birth to the Twitter hashtag #ReutersReplyAllGate.
A Reuters spokesperson has stated that while the issue has slowed down the company"s email systems, nothing went wrong and all systems are still working.
Source: Wall Street Journal | Girl working on email image via Shutterstock