AT&T Network Outage: Impact on Public Safety Services

AT&T Network Outage: Impact on Public Safety Services

March 13, 2024
AT&T Network Outage: Impact on Public Safety Services
In the “early hours” of February 22, 2024, AT&T’s wireless
County, KY, provided a ten-digit number for emergency
network suffered an outage, affecting communications
assistance. Some media sources, such as the Washington
nationwide. AT&T has not provided a definitive time that
Post, shared alternatives for contacting 911, such as using
the outage started. It disrupted AT&T Mobility (wireless)
Wi-Fi calling, the SOS feature available on certain Apple
service for some of its 220 million Mobility subscribers for
iPhones, wireless service from a different provider, or a
several hours. At 10:00 a.m. (CT), AT&T publicly reported
voice over internet protocol (VoIP) app, such as Zoom or
on the network outage on its website, stating that some
WhatsApp.
customers were experiencing service disruptions, three-
quarters of its Mobility customers were able to access its
The efficacy of these alternatives is varied. For example,
wireless network around 5 a.m. (CT), and the company was
fewer than 30% of U.S. households have landline phones
working to restore service to its remaining customers. At
and do not rely solely on mobile service; about 47% of U.S.
2:10 pm (CT), AT&T reported it had restored service to all
911 centers cannot receive texts; and the FCC has reported
affected customers. At 6:46 p.m. (CT), the company stated
on limitations to calling 911 over Wi-Fi.
“we believe that today’s outage was caused by the
application and execution of an incorrect process used as
Using a VoIP service to call 911 operates differently from
we were expanding our network, not a cyberattack,” and it
landline or mobile calls to 911. Some services, such as
was continuing its assessment.
Zoom, require users to pre-register their location, and send
911 calls to the center authorized to serve that location; if a
The outage affected wireless communications across the
caller is in a different location, the 911 call may not be
nation, as well as some services that depend on AT&T’s
routed to the appropriate call center. WhatsApp does not
wireless network, such as electronic payments, connected
provide access to emergency services, per its service terms.
car technologies, ride-hailing services, parking meters, and
fire alarms. The outage also affected public safety
The iPhone SOS feature allows users to call for help, but is
communications, including AT&T customers’ ability to
not available on all iPhones. Like VoIP, SOS operates
connect to 911 and the FirstNet network, a federally-funded
differently from 911 calling. When calling 911 in SOS
public safety network, built and operated by AT&T in
mode, an iPhone caller receives a text response with a short
partnership with the First Responder Network Authority, an
multiple-choice questionnaire about the emergency. The
agency under the Department of Commerce.
answers are sent to a 911 center as a text. If the 911 center
cannot receive texts, an emergency services relay center
This In Focus provides an overview of the outage’s impact
interacts with the caller via text and calls the 911 center to
on public safety communications, Federal Communications
relay the information. Apple specifies the limitations of its
Commission (FCC) outage rules, and issues for Congress.
service—that SOS is a text-only service; users cannot make
voice calls and can only text with the 911 center or through
Outage Impact on 911
a relay center; messages may take longer to send and
The impact on customers’ ability to reach 911 services
receive than regular texts; and users must have an
varied among jurisdictions. In Oldham County, KY,
unobstructed line-of-sight connection to a cell tower, which
emergency service officials reported 911 lines were
means foliage, buildings, or other obstructions could slow
disabled. Kings County, WA, officials reported that AT&T
or prevent messages from being sent or received.
customers were having trouble connecting to 911. The
Charlotte-Mecklenburg, NC, Police Department reported
While alternative connection methods were conveyed by
some AT&T customers were briefly unable to contact 911,
local officials and media during the outage, in many cases
though the outages did not appear to disrupt the ability of
limitations and caveats about the efficacy of reaching 911
its 911 center to receive calls. The Prince William County,
using these alternative methods were not.
VA, Department of Communications reported that 911
service was not disrupted; however, calls from AT&T
First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet)
phones did not transmit location information.
In P.L. 112-96, Congress established the FirstNet Authority
to deploy and operate a nationwide network for public
Local public safety officials notified people about 911
safety agencies at all levels of government. The law was
service disruptions and highlighted alternative means for
passed in response to interoperability issues experienced by
contacting 911. The San Francisco, CA, Emergency
public safety during the September 11, 2001, terrorist
Management Department informed callers via social media
attacks. In 2017, FirstNet awarded a 25-year, $6.5 billion
to use landline phones, Wi-Fi calling, or asking neighbors,
contract to AT&T to deploy, manage, maintain, and operate
friends, or family to contact 911. The Flagler County, FL,
the network. In December 2023, FirstNet confirmed and
Sheriff’s Office recommended texting 911. Oldham
validated that AT&T had successfully completed the initial
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AT&T Network Outage: Impact on Public Safety Services
five-year buildout on time and within budget. The network
obligations to continue to offer landline service as a carrier
currently serves more than 23,000 public safety agencies
of last resort. The state, and other states faced with similar
and organizations. In February 2024, FirstNet, with AT&T,
requests, may take outages into account when making
announced a 10-year, $8 billion initiative to expand
decisions on landline service changes.
network coverage and improve network services.
Issues for Congress
Information on the outage’s impact on FirstNet service is
After past outages, some Members asked the FCC to
sparse and varies across jurisdictions. In Charlotte, NC,
investigate, enforce rules, and make recommendations to
police officials reported computers inside police cars were
prevent future outages. Some Members have called for
down for about an hour. A deputy police chief in Athens,
greater transparency and accountability for service
GA, stated the department’s mobile data (in-vehicle)
providers after outages. Congress has also held hearings to
terminals were out of service, affecting their ability to
address the increasing number of reported outages.
dispatch. Medstar Mobile Healthcare, a nonprofit in-home
health care organization in Fort Worth, TX, reportedly lost
Emerging technologies, such as 5G wireless service, require
the ability to communicate with field units, causing the
the integration of software into wireless networks, which
service to revert to radio dispatching. The University of
may present additional risks. Congress may seek to assess
Virginia Health System in Charlottesville, VA, directed
and address these potential new risks. Some security
users to connect to its Wi-Fi network to regain connectivity
experts have urged enhanced planning, increased public
lost through FirstNet. The Los Angeles Police Department,
awareness, and public-private partnerships to assess and
however, reported no adverse impacts.
address risks. Options for Congress in this area may include
establishing outage reporting requirements or directing
AT&T reportedly prioritized FirstNet restoration. In
agencies, such as the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure
response to the outage, the FirstNet CEO reported that
Security Agency in DHS, to identify risks, strengthen
services were restored around 5:00 a.m. (CT), several hours
communication network resiliency, and provide
after service initially affected some FirstNet public safety
recommendations to Congress.
subscribers. Under its contract, AT&T is required to
provide FirstNet with an after-action report. While FirstNet
In 2022, the FCC adopted a Mandatory Disaster Response
recognized networks can and do fail, it also committed, as
Initiative (MDRI). It replaced the voluntary Wireless
the agency charged with overseeing the FirstNet network,
Network Resiliency Cooperative Framework (Framework),
to establishing an After-Action Task Force to assess the
proposed by industry in 2016 and accepted by the FCC in
outage and impact, learn from it, prevent future outages,
lieu of a regulatory framework. The MDRI includes many
and improve response so it may, in the event of any future
of the same provisions as the voluntary Framework,
outages, “understand the impact faster and surge to
requiring wireless providers to enable roaming when a
communicate with the public safety community.”
network is down, where technically feasible; establish
mutual aid agreements; enhance municipal preparedness;
Investigations
increase consumer readiness; and improve public awareness
In addition to the AT&T after-action report and assessment
and stakeholder communications regarding restoration
by FirstNet, the FCC, Department of Homeland Security
times. While the MDRI includes many elements that may
(DHS), and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) are also
have been useful during the recent outage, under current
conducting investigations. House Energy and Commerce
rules, the MDRI is triggered only in certain scenarios—
leaders issued a statement, saying they are working to
primarily in response to large-scale emergencies that
understand the cause and impact, and steps for preventing
require federal assistance. Options for Congress may
future outages.
include expanding when certain MDRI provisions, such as
mandatory roaming, may be invoked. One issue raised by
FCC Rules on Outages
this option would be the potential costs of added regulatory
FCC rules require wireless service providers to notify the
requirements, which could be passed on to consumers.
FCC within 120 minutes of discovering that they have
experienced an outage of at least 30 minutes. For any
After the outage, public safety experts emphasized the need
outage that affects a 911 call center, they are required to
for police and fire agencies that use FirstNet to maintain
notify the designated contact person at the center as soon as
their land mobile radio (LMR) systems as an alternative
possible and convey all available information that may be
communications method. Some public safety stakeholders
useful in managing the outage’s effect on the center and its
oppose recent calls to reassign spectrum in the 4.9 GHz
callers. Outage information is confidential; however, recent
band from local public safety agencies to FirstNet, arguing
rules allow state and local emergency management agencies
that local control of spectrum is necessary to provide robust
access to outage information filed with the FCC. The FCC’s
public safety communications. The allocation of spectrum
Enforcement Bureau can investigate outages and issue fines
in the 4.9 GHz band, and how it would best support public
for non-compliance with FCC rules, such as rules related to
safety, may be an issue of interest to Congress. Congress
outage notification and rules related to delivery of 911 calls.
may also consider proposals, such as in H.R. 3565, to
increase funding for 911 centers to improve network
Impact on AT&T
resiliency.
In addition to the investigations and potential enforcement
actions, the outage may also affect AT&T’s request to the
Jill C. Gallagher, Specialist Telecom Policy
California Public Utilities Commission to end its
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AT&T Network Outage: Impact on Public Safety Services

IF12613
Colby Leigh Rachfal, Specialist in Telecommunications
Policy

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