Optus Back Rescuing Brand After Shock Network Failure, Leaves Businesses Without Broadband

This time last year they were hosing down their brand reputation because of a major hack attack, today thousands of businesses are unable to operate after the Optus network crashed taking down their wholesale customers

including Aussie Broadband, Coles Mobile, Spintel, Southern Phone, Gomo, Dodo MobileMoose Mobile as well as Amaysim, and Vaya.

More than 10.2 million customers are affected with the cost to Australian businesses yet to be calculated.

This is the same network that had to refund customers, after Optus network failures left fans high and dry when they were unable to deliver a video streaming broadband service to support thousands of customers who wanted to watch the last Mens World Cup.

That problems led to embarrassing backflips with Optus forced to surrender the multimillion-dollar rights for World Cup matches to SBS after customers found themselves unable to watch the games from the Optus Sport service despite paying to do so.

The Federal Government is demanding answers with calls to Optus mobiles aren’t even ringing, people who need an internet connection to run their business are unable to operate with retailers getting inquiries for short term SIMs on Telstra and Vodafone networks.

The outage was first identified at 4.00am. Data from connectivity tracker Netblocks showed connectivity on Optus’ network was down to 17 per cent of normal levels at 8am AEDT.

Optus has even taken down medical organisations with Ramsay Health Care, which operates 73 private hospitals unable to take or make calls.

Optus communications teams claim “We are aware of an outage impacting our customers, Our teams are working to restore services as soon as possible. We will provide an update as soon as we are able”.

What’s not been explained is why the network went down in the first place.

According to the SMH, Melbourne’s Northern Health district also took to Facebook to inform patients that all phone lines into its hospital campuses had been affected.

“This includes phone lines into Northern Hospital Epping, Broadmeadows Hospital, Bundoora Centre, Craigieburn Centre, Kilmore District Hospital, and Victorian Virtual Emergency Department,” it wrote.

“We apologise for any inconvenience.”

The question for Federal Government decision makers is why Australian business are basically in the hands of two major carriers without a backup network being available when networks like Optus crash.

Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said she is in touch with the telco which is throwing its “full resources” at the problem. She said Optus did not believe the outage was the result of a hack.

“I think it’s been a very anxious morning for many Australians so far,” she told ABC Radio.

“It appears to be nationwide affecting broadband services and mobile … that is what we call deep in the network.

“[That is] certainly one that would require the full resources of Optus just to be thrown at it at pace.”