News Brief: Optus Triple Zero Outage Report Reveals Systemic Failures
Summary
An independent report into Optus’s 14-hour Triple Zero outage in September 2025, linked to two deaths, has slammed the telco with 21 recommendations. The report details a cascade of errors in a network upgrade and reveals alarming systemic issues in risk management and the compatibility between modern mobile networks and the emergency service.
Key Points
- Critical Failure: 605 callers failed to reach Triple Zero during the outage; only 150 were connected. The report links the failure to two deaths.
- Technology Mismatch: The Triple Zero system, designed for older 2G/3G networks, struggles with modern 4G/5G devices, causing inconsistent and delayed connections.
- “Puzzling” Inconsistency: The “camp-on” feature, meant to reroute calls, failed for many. Successful connections sometimes took 40-60 seconds—an untenable wait in an emergency.
- Cascade of Errors: The outage was triggered by incorrect instructions from Optus to its contractor, Nokia, exposing major flaws in risk management and oversight.
- Urgent Action Needed: Despite fixes after a 2023 outage, the report states more work is needed “urgently.” The CEO and board’s oversight work has “just started.”
- National Problem: Experts warn this is not just an Optus issue but a systemic failure in treating telecoms as critical national infrastructure.
新闻简报：Optus紧急呼叫中断报告揭示系统性失误
总结
一份关于Optus在2025年9月发生的、持续14小时并导致两人死亡的”000″紧急呼叫中断事件的独立报告，严厉批评了该电信公司，并提出了21项建议。报告详细说明了网络升级中的一系列错误，并揭示了风险管理和现代移动网络与紧急服务兼容性方面存在令人震惊的系统性问题。
关键点
- 严重故障：中断期间，605名呼叫者未能接通”000″紧急服务；仅150人成功接通。报告将此故障与两起死亡事件相关联。
- 技术不匹配：为旧式2G/3G网络设计的”000″系统难以兼容现代4G/5G设备，导致连接不一致和延迟。
- “令人困惑”的不一致性：本应转接呼叫的”强插”功能对多数人失效。成功连接有时需要40-60秒——在紧急情况下是无法接受的等待时间。
- 一连串的错误：中断由Optus向其承包商诺基亚提供的错误指令引发，暴露了风险管理和监督方面的重大缺陷。
- 需紧急行动：尽管在2023年中断后进行了修复，报告指出仍需”紧急”开展更多工作。CEO和董事会的监督工作”刚刚开始”。
- 全国性问题：专家警告这不仅是Optus的问题，更是未将电信视为关键国家基础设施而导致的系统性失败。
Original Article Link: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12-18/optus-releases-triple-zero-report-david-taylor-analysis/106158108