SINGAPORE: The hours-long Singtel landline outage last month was caused by a "technical issue" of a network component, Senior Minister of State for the Ministry of Digital Development and Information Janil Puthucheary said on Monday (Nov 11), citing preliminary findings.
A backup system also did not kick in as intended.
Speaking in parliament, Dr Janil said preliminary findings suggest that the technical issue affected the proper functioning of a network component in one of the two systems supporting Singtel’s fixed-line voice service.
The two systems, located in separate telephone exchanges, are designed to immediately take over the full load of the other when one system malfunctions, he said.
"However, in this instance, the failover did not happen seamlessly, which caused the intermittent service disruption," he explained.
The Singtel landline outage on Oct 8 disrupted calls to emergency services, healthcare institutions, as well as customer service lines for some government agencies, banks and businesses.
Members of Parliament had filed several questions on the matter, including what could have caused the disruption, how such an incident could be prevented in future and whether any action would be taken against Singtel.
Dr Janil said there is no evidence to suggest that the incident was related to a sabotage or cyberattack, adding that the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) is continuing its investigations.
"The telecommunication network in Singapore is a key infrastructure that supports our nation’s connectivity needs and requirements. IMDA holds key service providers, like Singtel, to high service standards and requires them to conduct regular audits on their network and infrastructure," he said.
"This includes ensuring the security of network design, redundancy measures, and business continuity plans. Service providers must also ensure that their networks are resilient against disruptions. IMDA will not hesitate to take strong action under the Telecommunication Act, including imposing financial penalties, should any lapses be identified."
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A backup system also did not kick in as intended.
Speaking in parliament, Dr Janil said preliminary findings suggest that the technical issue affected the proper functioning of a network component in one of the two systems supporting Singtel’s fixed-line voice service.
The two systems, located in separate telephone exchanges, are designed to immediately take over the full load of the other when one system malfunctions, he said.
"However, in this instance, the failover did not happen seamlessly, which caused the intermittent service disruption," he explained.
The Singtel landline outage on Oct 8 disrupted calls to emergency services, healthcare institutions, as well as customer service lines for some government agencies, banks and businesses.
Members of Parliament had filed several questions on the matter, including what could have caused the disruption, how such an incident could be prevented in future and whether any action would be taken against Singtel.
Dr Janil said there is no evidence to suggest that the incident was related to a sabotage or cyberattack, adding that the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) is continuing its investigations.
"The telecommunication network in Singapore is a key infrastructure that supports our nation’s connectivity needs and requirements. IMDA holds key service providers, like Singtel, to high service standards and requires them to conduct regular audits on their network and infrastructure," he said.
"This includes ensuring the security of network design, redundancy measures, and business continuity plans. Service providers must also ensure that their networks are resilient against disruptions. IMDA will not hesitate to take strong action under the Telecommunication Act, including imposing financial penalties, should any lapses be identified."
Continue reading...