National

Triple-zero text function could be piloted after outage

Mar 26, 2026

A person calls Triple Zero — A communications model allowing users to text Triple Zero could be piloted after fatal outages. -AAP Image

Australians cannot text triple zero despite the technology being used overseas, as officials explore alternative options in the wake of fatal Optus outage.

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Triple Zero Custodian Clare Chapple told a Senate inquiry into the fatal triple zero service outage that the Department of Communications was working on introducing an "SMS relay model" pilot.

The SMS relay model would allow a caller to text a call centre, then an operator would call the person back, rather than text them back, the custodian explained.

The pilot would help understand what is needed for a future triple zero landscape after an outage in September 2025 lasted almost 14 hours, affected hundreds of calls, and has been linked to two deaths as a result of emergency calls failing to connect.

"An important aspect is how SMS performs and how it is prioritised in the network, and whether it can provide the right kind of service in a time critical emergency," Ms Chapple said.

Opposition communications spokeswoman Sarah Henderson asked why text-to-triple-zero functionality is not available in Australia, as it successfully operates in other nations.

The text-to-triple-zero is different to the SMS relay function being sought for the pilot, as it allows people to directly text an emergency number and receive a text back.

"This is a technology available in numerous other countries, why has the government sat on its hands on text-to-triple-zero capability?," Senator Henderson asked.

"It's not rocket science."

Ms Chapple said "we are currently in the market procuring for SMS relay to triple zero" instead, and that the Department had not been briefed about the alternative text-to-triple-zero model.

Emergency text functionality in Australia is currently limited to the 106 Text Emergency Relay Service for people who are deaf or have a hearing or speech impairment, which requires a teletypewriter device, not standard mobile SMS.

Six months on from the fatal outage, Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young asked why the Australian Communications and Media Authority has not yet delivered a report to the inquiry committee.

The authority has been tasked with investigating Optus's compliance with emergency call service regulations.

"We're six months down the track and we haven't got anything back from the key regulator, and what I'm hearing is that neither has the Department (of Communications)," Senator Hanson-Young said.