Canada’s telecom regulator has issued a new directive requiring service providers to promptly report major network outages to regulatory bodies and government agencies within two hours of occurrence. Following service restoration, carriers must submit a detailed report within 30 days outlining the causes, impacts, and steps taken to resolve the outage. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) introduced these measures to enhance transparency for consumers and assist in preventing future disruptions.
Effective November 4, the new reporting requirements replace interim rules put in place over two years ago. Previously, telecom firms were obligated to submit post-outage reports within two weeks of resolving the issue. The CRTC emphasized that sharing this information would enable service providers to learn from incidents, inform Canadians about outage causes, and aid governments in crafting policies to mitigate future disruptions.
Notification protocols during outages differ based on the nature of the disruption. For instances where there is a complete loss of internet, cellphone, data, or landline service lasting at least 30 minutes, providers must inform the CRTC, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, and local emergency management organizations. Should an outage impact 911 services, providers must notify local call centers responsible for emergency call responses within 30 minutes, regardless of duration.
These regulations stem from a consultation initiated by the CRTC in 2023, prompted by events like the July 2022 Rogers outage, affecting millions for up to 15 hours. Following an independent report by Xona Partners Inc., which attributed the outage to a configuration error during a network upgrade, Rogers has undertaken network resilience improvements and implemented all recommendations in the report.
In response to these developments, major telecom companies in Canada formalized an agreement to ensure mutual assistance during major outages. Additionally, the CRTC announced two new consultations to gather input on enhancing network resiliency and service reliability. The commission stressed the importance of reliable telecom services, especially in emergencies, and highlighted forthcoming consumer protection measures to provide timely updates, refunds, or bill credits during service disruptions.
CRTC Chair and CEO Vicky Eatrides emphasized the significance of these actions in safeguarding Canadians from service interruptions. Notably, improvements have been outlined for Northern Canada, including a mandate for local provider Northwestel to automatically reduce customer bills when internet services are disrupted for over 24 hours.