UPDATE: The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) has issued a clarification: the extension on its 24-hour directive covers Reddit only. Discord did not get one. Details below.

BREAKING: Discord appears to be blocked in the Philippines. Multiple users report that visiting discord.com and discord.gg now loads a "Forbidden Access" page instead of the chat platform. The page carries both the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) and Globe logos.

The notice reads: "Access to this website has been blocked in accordance to the directive of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC), as determined and identified by relevant government agencies." It offers no further explanation, no timeline and no appeal route. Just a "Go Back" button.

The discord.gg block matters as much as the main site. That short domain powers Discord's invite links, the URLs communities share on Facebook, YouTube and streams to bring new members in. With both domains hitting the block page, joining a server through a shared link is off the table for affected users.

Reddit got an extension, Discord got a letter in

In its clarification, the CICC said Reddit received an extension after its officials met with the agency online within the 24-hour window and "engaged with the agency on specific commitments that the Philippines urgently needs to strengthen online child safety."

Discord took a different route. The CICC said the platform sent a letter expressing its willingness to engage with the agency on its existing teen safety measures. That was not enough. "No extension has been granted to Discord at this time, pending direct discussions with the platform and concrete commitments on the CICC's requirements," the agency said.

The CICC also named what is driving its focus on Discord. Authorities are examining extremist communities on the platform, including groups tied to Nihilistic Violent Extremism (NVE), which the agency says have been linked to the radicalization and recruitment of minors involved in the country's recent school shootings.

The clarification does not directly mention the block page or the NTC. It does explain why Reddit remains reachable while Discord users are hitting a wall.

How the 24-hour ultimatum started

On September 22 the CICC, the anti-cybercrime body attached to the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), gave Discord and Reddit 24 hours to appoint a resident agent or local representative in the Philippines. The agency also asked both platforms to submit written plans covering age verification, rapid response and child exploitation safeguards.

The CICC said it would coordinate with the NTC and the Department of Foreign Affairs, and warned that non-compliance could mean restrictions or outright access blocks for Filipino users. The order followed the September 18 shooting at Banga National High School in South Cotabato.

Separately, the National Privacy Commission issued show cause orders to Meta, Roblox, Reddit and Discord for failing to register under the Data Privacy Act.

What we still don't know

The extent of the block is unclear as of writing. The screenshots circulating so far show Globe's block page. We have not confirmed whether Smart, Converge, DITO or other providers have applied the same restriction.

It is also unclear whether the block reaches the Discord desktop and mobile apps. The apps lean on several other domains for chat, voice and media beyond discord.com and discord.gg. ISP-level blocks like this usually work by redirecting requests for specific addresses. That means some features may break while others keep limping along, depending on which servers the apps reach.

The NTC has not issued a public statement confirming a block order at the time of writing. Discord has also not commented publicly beyond the letter the CICC described.

Why this hits harder than a typical site block

For many Filipino gamers, study groups, creator communities and small developer teams, Discord is not a side app. It is the group chat, the voice lobby and the support desk rolled into one. With no extension on the table and no announced scope for the block, server admins are left guessing whether to move their communities or wait for Discord and the CICC to sit down.

We will update this story as the NTC, the CICC and Discord respond and more details come in. If you are seeing the block page on a different provider, or if the app still works on your connection, let us know in the comments.

This is a developing story.