In Sydney on the 13th, the “000” phone, an emergency crime and accident reporting call made to Samsung Electronics’ mobile phone, was not connected to the service.
The user, who was using TPG Telecom, Australia’s third largest telecom service provider, attempted to make an emergency call of 000 for his relative, who later died. It is not known what the mobile phone was.
In this regard, TPG Telecom issued a statement saying that the communication network was operating normally at the time, adding, “The initial investigation showed that the failure of the call was due to the fact that the customer’s device operated with software that was not compatible with 000 emergency calls on the communication network.”
The accident is likely related to the device’s Android software not being updated properly.
Samsung Electronics also announced on its website that it has found that some older mobile devices are not properly connected to 000 emergency calls in case of emergency.
000 If emergency callers cannot access the original carrier network, they must connect to another carrier network, but some mobile phones do not work.
Samsung Electronics said, “Most handsets, including the Galaxy S21 series, can correct such problems with software updates,” adding, “We have informed customers to update their mobile phone software urgently.”
However, some older models, including the Galaxy S6 and S7 series, which have been released more than seven years ago, need to be completely replaced. He also added that devices that have yet to resolve 000 emergency call access through software updates or device replacements will be blocked from accessing the communication network after a certain period of time.
In this regard, an IT industry official said, “In the case of older mobile phones, emergency calls work smoothly only when software updates provided by the manufacturer,” adding, “This accident can occur if customers do not update the software despite the manufacturer’s recommendation.”
In this regard, the Australian Telecommunications and Media Agency (ACMA) also said it was gathering information to investigate whether the 000 emergency call regulations were violated in connection with the incident.
Earlier in September, the Australian Parliament is investigating Optus after four customers who tried to make an emergency call died after a communication network error by local telecommunications company Optus temporarily paralyzed 000 emergency calls.
JENNIFER KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
