Optus continues to work through a mobile network software issue that has left around 35,000 customers without full service, according to its latest service status information and statements from the company’s communications team.
The company says it has identified all affected users and is contacting them directly with instructions to restart their devices, which it says will restore service immediately. Optus’ official network status page maintains that customers seeing “No Service” or “SOS” on their phones should restart their devices, and confirms that the current disruption does not affect access to emergency services via Triple Zero.
Optus’ public service dashboard also includes a national outage register that lists past unplanned network incidents but does not provide further technical details about the current software problem.
The latest outage comes against a backdrop of heightened regulatory scrutiny of the Australian telecommunications sector following major network disruptions in recent years. In 2025, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) launched an investigation into a previous Optus outage that caused failures in the Triple Zero emergency call system, and has been seeking detailed information from Optus about causes and responses, including how the company communicates outage information to customers and regulators.
The federal government has also been working through the recommendations of an official review into the 2023 Optus outage, which focused on emergency call resilience and the legislative framework governing carrier obligations during outages. That government response agreed to measures intended to clarify and strengthen providers’ responsibilities around emergency services and outage communications.
Separately, the Senate’s Environment and Communications References Committee undertook inquiries into significant network outages, examining the role of government, the regulator and carriers in ensuring reliable access to emergency services and other essential telecommunications. These inquiries reflect ongoing political and public concern about network reliability and resilience.
Consumer advocacy groups have also urged enforceable performance standards to guarantee minimum service levels, with proposals for penalties and direct compensation for customers in the event of significant outages. While these recommendations remain under consideration, they illustrate broader pressure from both regulators and consumer advocates for improved network reliability and accountability.
At this stage, the current Optus disruption remains limited to a proportion of users and does not affect emergency call capabilities, but it occurs amid continued scrutiny of how carriers manage outages, communicate with users and meet regulatory expectations.
