Warning Optus services will take hours to return to normal after eight hour outage - as CEO fronts a furious Australia

Optus services are slowly coming back online after a nationwide eight-hour-long outage - but things are still not looking great.

Optus customers are slowly being brought back online after an eight-hour outage caused havoc across Australia, but the telco has warned it could still be hours before people have full service.

The outage, which began shortly after 4am Wednesday, was sporadically restored at roughly 12.35pm (AEDT) as customers’ mobile and fixed-line services gradually came back online.

“Some services across fixed and mobile are now gradually being restored,” Optus said in a statement.

“This may take a few hours for all services to recover, and different services may restore at different sites over that time.”

Optus suffered one of its most extensive outages, leaving hospitals, businesses, transport networks and other government services in chaos for over eight hours.

The Optus outage affected up to 10 million people in Australia. Picture: NCA Newswire / Gaye Gerard

The outage created significant delays for commuters, impacted health services and affected online banking.

Communications minister Michelle Rowland vented the nation’s “frustration” to the press shortly after 11am (AEDT), stressing it was vital for Optus to be “transparent and timely” in finding a solution.

“(The) frustration is not only in terms of inconvenience but also economic frustration as well,” she declared.

“From the outset, I reiterate that it is vital for Optus to be transparent and timely.

“It is essential that we have that timeliness and the transparency to get consumers competence what is a vital part of our infrastructure and services in this country.”

She added while it’s too early to enter discussions regarding compensation that, people experiencing financial loss due to the outage should document such evidence.

Communications Minister Michelle Rowland is requesting information from Optus and urging them to keep Australians updated on the situation. Picture: Emma Brasier/Women in Media

“I do reiterate the statement of the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) that it is important, especially for small businesses, to keep receipts so that any recourse and any redress that may be available to them has that evidentiary base,” she said.

“We are now at 11am. For a lot of people who are trying to get on with their day in their businesses, this is absolutely vital that they get back to normality.”

Ms Rowland added 000 calls can currently be made from Optus mobile phones but not landlines.

Optus CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin addresses customers in a video. Source: Supplied.

Optus CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin told ABC Radio the outage occurred at roughly 4.05am (AEDT) this morning and is doubtful the cause is a “hack”.

“There is no indication that there is anything to do with cyber at this stage,” she said.

Earlier this morning, she confirmed that the government is “seeking information from Optus on the major outage”.

“Our systems are actually very stable, we provide great coverage to our customers, this is a very rare occurrence.”

The outage is causing chaos for hospitals, businesses, transportation networks, and other government services. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

At the time of her ABC interview, Ms Bayer Rosmarin was unable to confirm a cause, or a timeframe for a fix.

“We are working really hard to get it up and running as soon as we possibly can,” she said.

“The team has tried a number of paths of restoration.

“So far, we have not had the result we have hoped for and we’re pursuing every avenue to get everybody back online as soon as possible.”

Optus is yet to reveal the root cause behind the outage despite widespread speculation.

Ubers, small businesses and even snake catchers are among traders nationwide who have been thrown into disarray amid a major national outage of Optus services.

The outages are impacting carriers and fixed networks.

The NSW Poisons Information Centre hotline is currently impacted by the nationwide Optus outage. During this time, please call the temporary hotline number on 1300 392 539 for all poisons advice.

In the event of an emergency, call 000.

More info: https://t.co/SO8vM1KAgupic.twitter.com/f3A1zHLlxj

— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) November 7, 2023

The outages impacted carriers and fixed networks, meaning businesses that use the telco were without EFTPOS and are forced to trade in cash.

Countless reports of businesses affected by the outage flowed in from across the country.

Trevor Long, a leading Australian tech journalist, told 2GB it was the “biggest telco outage we’ve ever seen before”.

It’s the second major incident for the telco in two years after almost 10 million Optus customers had their personal details compromised in 2022 when hackers taunted the public for weeks by releasing the details of 10,000 customers on the dark web.

Communication Workers Union (CWU) National Assistant Secretary James Perkins aimed recent Optus job cuts in a scathing statement.

Optus has cut 200 jobs in the last two months, bringing the total job cuts announced during the previous 12 months to over 600.

“When you repeatedly slash jobs and outsource critical services to contracting companies – this is what happens,” he said.

“Australians deserve better than to have one of the major national carriers leave them in the dark for hours, with no answers.”

- with NCA Newswire

Originally published as Warning Optus services will take hours to return to normal after eight hour outage - as CEO fronts a furious Australia