A man walk past an Optus store in Sydney, Australia, on Oct. 26, 2024. Susan Mortimer/The Epoch Times
Communications Minister Anika Wells has told Optus to appoint an independent external reviewer to restore confidence in its ability to deliver Triple Zero services, following back-to-back outages that have been linked to three deaths.
“This is for Optus to take accountability for,” Wells said after meeting Singtel Chief Executive Yuen Kuan Moon and Optus Chief Executive Stephen Rue.
Wells said she conveyed a “collective conviction” that the outages were “completely unacceptable” and that Australians needed guarantees that the system would not fail again.
She also confirmed the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) is running a formal investigation.
“There is a very serious lack of confidence in Optus to deliver Triple Zero services,” Wells said. “That is why it is right and proper that ACMA conduct this investigation.”
What Went Wrong
The demand for accountability comes after Optus suffered two major breakdowns in less than two weeks.
On Sept. 18, a firewall upgrade caused 600 Triple Zero calls to fail nationwide, an outage linked to three deaths.
Just days later, a second disruption hit parts of New South Wales, again blocking a dozen emergency calls.
The repeat failures have intensified scrutiny of the telco’s systems, raised questions about funding, and prompted wider concerns about governance.
In 2023, the federal government launched a review after a nationwide Triple Zero outage, handing down 18 recommendations to strengthen the system.
Among them was the creation of a Triple Zero custodian to oversee the entire network. More than 18 months later, several recommendations remain unfinished, including the custodian role.
When questioned, Wells said legislation for a “Triple Zero guardian” is being fast-tracked.
“I’m still a new minister … but we are fast-tracking our Triple Zero guardian legislation that will give confidence to Australians about the specific role Triple Zero plays in our country,” she said.
