Optus has offered customers 200 gigabytes of free data as compensation for its network outage, a move that has been widely panned.
Optus chief executive Kelly Bayer Rosmarin resigned from her position last week after presiding over both the major outage and a data breach 13 months earlier, with parent company Singtel now leading a global search for her successor.
At a fiery two-hour Senate grilling earlier this month, Bayer Rosmarin said Optus had conducted welfare checks on all 228 Optus customers who were unable to connect to triple zero, and that “everybody is OK”.
“We absolutely believe that the triple-zero system should have worked, and it’s critical for all Australians that that system can be relied upon,” she said.
“We don’t manage the triple-zero system. It’s a very complex system that involves all the carriers.”
The executive also revealed she did not speak to Rowland until four hours into the outage.
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A similar outage last year suffered by Canadian telco Rogers led to new laws requiring all telecommunications providers to provide mutual assistance to one another in the event of an outage, including emergency roaming services for rivals’ affected customers. It also spurred new requirements for telcos on how to communicate to the public in the event of an outage.
Rogers’ chief technology officer at the time of its mass outage was Jorge Fernandes, who currently serves as chief technology officer for Optus’ parent company Singtel.
“The Albanese government’s post-incident review will help industry identify where its processes need to be strengthened, and provide advice to government on potential reforms,” Rowland said.
“Australians expect and deserve better from their communications service providers when these kinds of incidents arise, and I would encourage all to have their say – from impacted businesses and industry through to consumers.”
The review will report back to government by February 29.
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