A customer has died after being unable to reach emergency services on Australia's third-largest mobile network. TPG Telecom, which operates the Vodafone and Lebara brands, confirmed the incident occurred when the individual attempted to call the emergency number, triple zero, using an older Samsung phone.

TPG Telecom CEO Inaki Berroeta expressed condolences, stating, "This is a tragic incident, and our condolences and thoughts are with the individual's family and loved ones. Customer safety remains our highest priority. Access to emergency services is critical."

The incident took place in Sydney, where the caller was trying to connect to the emergency hotline through Lebara. At that time, TPG's network was fully operational, and there were no reported outages. However, preliminary investigations revealed that the calls failed due to the customer's outdated Samsung phone, which was running software incompatible with making triple zero calls. Samsung had previously identified certain older devices that required software updates to connect to emergency services on TPG's network.

Although the death occurred on Thursday, TPG was not informed until the following Monday, when it received notification from NSW Ambulance. In response, the company has urged customers with affected devices to update their phones. Those who do not update their handsets within five weeks will have their devices blocked from making calls.

This issue is not isolated. Other telecommunications companies have implemented similar measures after Telstra and Optus discovered the Samsung-specific problem affecting the Vodafone network in late October. Berroeta emphasized the importance of updating devices, stating, "We urge all customers with outdated software to replace or update their devices without delay to ensure they can reach triple zero in an emergency."

TPG has notified Federal Communications Minister Anika Wells, the Triple Zero Custodian, the NSW government, and the telecommunications regulator about the incident. The telecommunications industry has faced increased scrutiny following a recent Optus outage that prevented hundreds of triple zero calls and was linked to three fatalities. Optus CEO Stephen Rue has faced calls for his resignation and has been questioned by parliament regarding the company's six-hour delay in reporting the outage to the Australian Communications and Media Authority and Wells.

In response to these incidents, the federal government has introduced new regulations requiring telecommunications companies to report outages to the communications watchdog and emergency services in real time.

The following Samsung phone models are identified as needing replacement or software updates to ensure access to emergency services: - Galaxy A7 2017 - Galaxy A5 2017 - Galaxy J1 2016 - Galaxy J3 2016 - Galaxy J5 2017 - Galaxy Note 5 - Galaxy S6 - Galaxy S6 edge - Galaxy S6 Edge+ - Galaxy S7 - Galaxy S7 Edge

Additionally, around 60 other Samsung devices require a software update if they do not already have it.