Australia experienced a significant telecom disruption when Optus, the country’s second-largest telco, suffered a major network failure, impacting 40% of the population. The 12-hour outage disrupted internet and phone services, affecting critical sectors including transport and healthcare.
The Australian government, recognizing the severity of the situation, has initiated an investigation. Communications Minister Michelle Rowland emphasized the importance of understanding and learning from this incident to prevent future occurrences. Additionally, the media regulator will review the outage’s impact on emergency services, particularly the disruption of emergency “000” calls.
The incident caused considerable distress among business owners, with many, including taxi drivers and cafe operators, contemplating compensation claims for lost revenue. Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones acknowledged these concerns on ABC Radio, suggesting the validity of compensation for businesses affected by the outage.
The government is also exploring future preventative measures, including enabling network switching during outages to maintain communications. This incident not only highlights a critical failure in Australia’s telecom infrastructure but also underscores the need for robust and resilient systems to safeguard against similar disruptions.