Singtel-owned Optus apologises for outage that disrupted emergency calls
The 76-minute technical glitch on Friday affected users across three states in Australia
Optus, Australia's second-largest telecommunications provider, issued an apology on Saturday (Sep 12) following a 76-minute network outage on Friday. The technical glitch disrupted voice calling services for customers in parts of Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, and the Northern Territory. Some users experienced "intermittent call dropouts," according to Optus.
The company expressed regret for the disruption, stating, "We sincerely apologise to customers for the disruption." The outage comes after a similar issue last year, which left hundreds of people unable to contact emergency services, resulting in two deaths. Chris Bowen, a senior government minister, described the latest incident as "deeply concerning" and emphasized the importance of maintaining optimal working order for emergency triple-0 call technology.
Police in Victoria conducted around 40 welfare checks on affected callers, confirming no adverse outcomes. In 2024, Optus was fined A$12 million for failing to provide emergency call services during a nationwide outage in 2023. The company also faced a cyberattack in 2022 that impacted 9.5 million Australians.
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Also reported by 2 other outlets
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