Telstra, Australia’s largest telecommunications company, has been fined $3 million by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) following two significant failures in its emergency call service within a year. The fine, levied in late December 2024, followed a civil rights investigation that uncovered 473 violations of emergency call response time targets. These incidents have resulted in a loss of confidence in Telstra’s ability to protect and maintain essential infrastructure.
In the most recent disruption, Telstra’s triple-0 call centre was plunged into a 90-minute outage, causing consternation from emergency service supporters. The ACMA pointed out the importance of consistently dependable emergency call services, particularly for Australians in potentially life-threatening circumstances. The authority’s main concern is with the potential impact of these failures on public safety.
Emergency Service Failures Raise Concerns
Telcommunications consultant Paul Budde sparked the concern by calling Telstra’s recent mishaps, red flags that its critical infrastructure is crumbling. He emphasized the potential risks associated with such lapses, stating, “We’ve now had two major emergency service failures from Telstra in under a year.” This ongoing breakdown, its third in less than a year, points to more systemic deficiencies in the corporation’s operating procedures.
Budde further stated, “Emergency services don’t get a second chance. We need to treat these systems as national assets, not just back-end utilities.” His comments serve as a poignant reminder of the importance of emergency services and what can happen when we fail to properly maintain our infrastructure. The ACMA member, Samantha Yorke, echoed these sentiments, noting the potential for severe harm had someone required urgent assistance during the outage.
“This mistake could have contributed to very serious harm if someone who relies on this service had needed emergency assistance but was unable to get through.” – Samantha Yorke, ACMA member and consumer lead.
The situation was dire, but hardly anyone called to request the substitute 106 service. This service was uniquely meant for Australians who were deaf and used a TTY device, but it too was left adrift during the outage. This reality should provide some relief. That doesn’t reduce the urgent need to fix systemic problems with Telstra’s emergency call services.
Independent Review to Address Operational Shortcomings
Telstra considered their subsequent breaches and the ACMA’s investigation in this specific case to be inadequate. They’ve brought in their own independent reviewer to assess how their new operational arrangements will ensure reliable delivery of the 106 emergency call service. The purpose of this review is to find those faults and make certain that the type or similar failure does not happen again moving forward.
Telstra’s spokesperson underscored the importance of ensuring that emergency call services remain reliable at all times. Most importantly, they focused on the public cascading consequences that any disruption would cause. They have pledged to use the review’s findings to drive improvements to their operational processes and develop a regular industry-wide assessment by operational processes.
“We fully accept the findings of the ACMA and have committed to an independent review of our change management processes and operational arrangements to ensure such a mistake doesn’t happen again.” – Telstra spokesperson.
Don’t celebrate just yet. According to Budde, simply going through a review isn’t enough. He suggested that Telstra’s focus on becoming a high-value tech company has detracted from its responsibilities as a utility provider. “For years, Telstra has tried to position itself as a high-value tech company rather than a reliable utility,” he remarked.
The Implications for Public Safety
After several emergency service failures by Telstra, these issues of public safety and corporate accountability have come into focus. Consumers depend on these services in moments of crisis, and any interruption in service can be a matter of life and death.
Budde pointed out that if fundamental fail-safes fail during routine operations, it raises questions about the company’s prioritization of safety. “If basic fail-safes don’t survive a server migration, maybe it’s time to rethink where the company is placing its focus and whether public safety is still part of the mission,” he stated.
The ACMA has taken the step of imposing a $3 million penalty. This move underscores the emerging need for flexible and dependable, even emergency, communication systems. Just as Australians rely on services such as triple-0 to provide emergency support, telecommunication firms have a responsibility to ensure their infrastructure are a top priority.
