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This week
IN THE NEWS: New research finds three-quarters of Australians want better complaints handling from digital platforms, Sue Salthouse memorial lecture tonight and more.
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New research from the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) has revealed that almost three in four Australians agree that it needs to be easier to make a complaint and to get their issues resolved when dealing with digital platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, eBay, and Service NSW. A nationally representative survey of 1,000 Australians conducted by the peak body for communications consumers using Ipsos’ Digital Omnibus online survey found that 74% of respondents think that it needs to be easier for people to make a complaint, and 78% think that it needs to be easier for people to get their issues resolved on digital platforms [ACCAN].
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The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) is delighted to invite you to attend the Inaugural Sue Salthouse Memorial Lecture. This even honours Sue Salthouse and celebrates Sue’s unfailing commitment to Disability advocacy and Human Rights. The online event will take place from 6:00 pm on the eve of the International Day of People with Disability, Thursday 2nd December 2021. To register, click here.
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ACCAN recently made a submission to the eSafety consultation on the Draft Restricted Access System Declaration 2021. The Declaration updates the 2014 Declaration to align with the changes in the Online Safety Act 2021. ACCAN broadly supports the Draft Declaration. However, we did reiterate our concerns that aspects of the enforcement mechanisms are unlikely to result in the intended outcome of greater community protection [ACCAN].
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ACCAN recently made a submission to the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications consultation on the Online Safety (Basic Onilne Safety Expectations) Determination 2021 exposure draft. The consultation provided an opportunity to comment on the government’s expectations on how online services should pro-actively act to protect Australians from online harm and abuse. In-principle, ACCAN supports the draft Determination however, we highlighted that several enforcement mechanisms lack rigor and are unlikely to result in the intended outcome of greater protection for online service users [ACCAN].
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Have your telecommunications services improved since the start of the pandemic? Research indicates that many Australians still do not have adequate internet for their needs including telehealth. There is a lack of evidence describing people’s experiences with telecommunications and telehealth and how these have been impacted by the pandemic. Simbani Research is doing a national Telecommunications and Telehealth Survey to explore and report these issues. The average time taken to do the survey is about 5 minutes. The survey is anonymous. [Simbani Research]
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The Australian government will introduce new “anti-troll” social media legislation that is designed to hold social media services such as Facebook and Instagram liable for hurtful comments published on their platforms. The legislation will define social media services as the publisher of the comments, allowing them to be the target of a defamation claim in an Australian court [9News].
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Optus is running a new initiative as an extension of its Donate Your Data program – Donate your Device. Launching with the help of Good 360, a not-for-profit that connects goods with people who need them most, Optus will start distributing previously loved phones to people going without in an effort to bridge the digital divide [Gizmodo].
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Australian telcos have been handed new powers to prevent malicious SMS messages from being sent, by automatically detecting and blocking them at a network level. The federal government has amended regulations associated with the Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act to tackle the growing number of SMS scams [iTNews].
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The Australian Federal Police will establish a new cybercrime coordination centre to clamp down on business email compromise (BEC) and other phishing attacks. The Joint Policing Cybercrime Coordination Centre (JPC3), which is set to launch in March 2022, will work with the Australian Cyber Security Centre to investigate cyber criminals [iTNews]
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TPG Telecom says it has set a world record for a long-range video and voice call on a 5G network in a new demonstration that shows the reach and capability of the company’s recently switched-on 5G standalone core network [iTWire]
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Tel: (02) 9288 4000
Email: media@accan.org.au
Web: accan.org.au
Twitter: @accan_au
Facebook.com/accanau
LinkedIn: accan.org.au/LinkedIn
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Although we take care to direct subscribers to sites with accurate and reliable content, we advise that ACCAN is not responsible for the content within external sites and has no control over the views, services or information contained therein. Information contained on external sites may not necessarily reflect ACCAN's policy, standards or beliefs.
The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network's representation of residential and other consumers' interests in relation to telecommunications issues is made possible by funding provided by the Commonwealth of Australia under section 593 of the Telecommunications Act 1997. This funding is recovered from charges on telecommunications carriers.
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