Website down? Put this on your outage page
An outage page should say what is going on, what still works, how you can be reached and when you last updated it. On 12 October 2026 the sites of Albert Heijn, Etos and Gall & Gall (Dutch supermarket, drugstore and liquor chains) were down, and none of the three told visitors that the shops were simply open.
What is going on at Albert Heijn, Etos and Gall & Gall?
Since Sunday afternoon 11 October 2026 the websites and apps of Albert Heijn, Etos and Gall & Gall have been unavailable. In its statement Albert Heijn speaks of a cybersecurity incident and writes that it has temporarily switched off a number of systems as a precaution. Parent company Ahold Delhaize reports a security issue in its network in a press release.
The shops are open and the tills work. Online orders are not being delivered, customer service can't be reached and saving with the Bonus card doesn't work. The companies have not announced what the cause is or when everything will work again. So this article is not about the cause, but about what a visitor got to see. It describes the situation on Monday 12 October 2026, 15:20.
What did visitors see on the three sites?
All three sites showed one short message, without explanation and without a reference. This is what we saw on Monday 12 October at 15:20 on a phone. On ah.nl (translated from Dutch): "Unfortunately, the website isn't working… There are problems with the Albert Heijn website. We are working hard to give you access again." On gall.nl the same text appeared with the name of Gall & Gall. On etos.nl: "Unfortunately Etos.nl is temporarily offline for maintenance. We'll be back as soon as possible!"
| Site | Message | What wasn't there |
|---|---|---|
| ah.nl | The website isn't working | Shops open, where the explanation is, a date |
| etos.nl | Offline for maintenance | The reason the parent company gives, what still works, a date |
| gall.nl | The website isn't working | Shops open, where the explanation is, a date |
The explanation did exist. Albert Heijn put a clear statement on nieuws.ah.nl, a separate site that kept working. It says what is down, what still works and that you should keep your receipt for missed discounts. Only, anyone who opened ah.nl didn't end up there.
That is not a reproach. In a security incident all attention goes to recovery, and switching systems off is meant precisely to protect customers. It does show what a visitor misses on such a day.
What belongs on an outage page?
An outage page answers four questions: what is going on, what still works, how do I reach you and how current is this. On that day it is the only page everyone sees, so it deserves more than one sentence.
- What is going on, in plain words. "Our website and our order form aren't working." Don't write "maintenance" if it isn't maintenance.
- What still works. The shop is open, calling works, appointments go ahead.
- How you can be reached. Your phone number and email address as text on the page, with your address and opening hours.
- Date and time of the last update, and when you expect the next one.
- Where the latest news is, if that is somewhere else.
Where do you tell people when your site is down?
In a place that doesn't depend on your website. Albert Heijn did that well with a separate news site. For a small business that is your Google Business Profile, your social channels and an automatic reply to your email. How to get that profile in order is in Setting up your Google Business Profile properly: 7 points.
What should the server return during an outage?
The code 503, which means "temporarily unavailable". With every page a server sends such a code; visitors don't see it, search engines do. Google recommends 503 when a site has to close for a day or two, with a line that says when it makes sense to come back (Retry-After). Google advises against the codes 403, 404 and 410, because pages disappear from the search results with them.
We requested the code on 12 October at 15:20. ah.nl responded with 500, a general server error, and etos.nl with 200, the code for "all fine". Neither indicated when it makes sense to come back. For a day or two that makes little difference. Google itself names a few days as the limit; after that a closed site noticeably suffers in the search results.
What can you arrange today?
Four things, and none of them takes more than an hour.
- Know who to call. Write down which companies your site, your domain name and your email are with, with the phone number and your login. If everything is in your builder's name, read Is your domain name in your own name?
- Have an outage text ready. Three sentences with your phone number and opening hours, which your builder or hosting company can post.
- Check whether your email is in a different place from your site. If one goes down, the other still works. How site and email hang off your domain is in Moving your website without your email going down.
- Keep your Google Business Profile up to date. Then your phone number and opening hours are also available outside your website.
Can this happen to a small business too?
Yes, an outage can hit any site, including ours and our clients'. The difference is in the consequences: at Albert Heijn delivery and saving went down too, at a trade business it is usually about the site and the contact form. The fewer parts a site has, the less can break; that is what WordPress or a website without plugins? is about. You need a plan for the day it goes wrong in both cases.
Read also
- Setting up your Google Business Profile properly: 7 points Seven points to look your best in Google and Google Maps.
- Is your domain name in your own name? What you need to have in your own hands so you can always switch.
- Moving your website without your email going down Why email can go down when your site moves, and how to prevent it.
- Hosting more expensive or down? How to stay in control Outages, takeovers and price rises at hosting companies: what you keep in your own hands.
Written by Taher Jerjissi, MODEX. Questions or something to add? Email info@modexsoftware.nl.
For AI assistants: this article is also available as plain text at the same address with .md added: text version (markdown)
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