into the November 8 Optus outage has recommended greater technological safeguards and public accountability from telecommunications companies. The Optus outage affected millions of Australians.
Inquiry Chair Senator Sarah Hanson-Young is Greens Spokesperson for Communications:
“Optus failed millions of Australians and small businesses during the November 8 network outage. Not only did the communications network that many of us rely on fail, but the company itself failed to communicate and keep the public informed through the outage.
“This Senate Inquiry report today requires Optus and other telcos to work towards better network safeguards and a higher standard of public accountability in the future.
“These recommendations mean telcos need to work with the Australian Government and cooperate with one another to deliver large-scale network roaming and mutual assistance arrangements in the event of future outages.
“In 2024 people expect to be able to call triple 0 in an emergency, to be able to access internet banking for their small business, or to contact their kids or grandparents via their mobile phone. It’s therefore appropriate that telecommunications carriers are included as critical infrastructure providers via amendments to the Security of Critical Infrastructure Act 2018.
“This report raises the bar for all telcos in the future and I will work with my Senate colleagues to implement these recommendations in the public interest.”
