Google says an issue with Gmail is delaying under 3% of messages with attachments [Updated]

We’ve been getting reports of an issue affecting Gmail users where messages with attachments are being ‘lost’ in transit. The issue has been duplicated with both our personal and Google Apps Gmail accounts, and there are signs across the web that other folks are experiencing it as well. Updates below.

We reached out to Google and they confirmed that there was an issue and that it was affecting less than 3% of all messages with attachements.

We’re investigating reports of an issue with Google Mail. We will provide more information shortly. Affected users are able to access the Gmail service, but are experiencing delays for messages that include attachments. This issue is affecting less than 3% of all messages with attachments.

What happens is that an email message with an attachment appears to be sent correctly, but then is never received on the other end. This appears to completely eat the email, but from the status message posted on Google’s page, it appears to be a ‘delay’ rather than a complete loss of the message.

So if you’ve sent an email with an attachment, expect it to take a bit longer than usual, we’ve seen delays of around 30 minutes on average.

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Google says that “service has already been restored for some users” and that it “expects a resolution for all users in the near future.”

H/t Gabe Rivera and Alex Wilhelm

Updated: Google says that the problem has now been resolved.

The problem with Google Mail should be resolved. We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience and continued support. Please rest assured that system reliability is a top priority at Google, and we are making continuous improvements to make our systems better.
The delayed messages should be delivered within the next few hours.