NBN outages: What to do when your internet is down

I've confirmed there's an NBN outage. Now what?

If you discover there's a network outage in your area, there's little to be done about your internet connection. You'll need to wait until the NBN is back up and running.

In the meantime, if you really need the internet, consider:

1. Hotspotting

Your home internet connection might be cooked, but your mobile internet connection should be unaffected. You can hotspot or tether your phone connection to other personal devices, such as your laptop and table, on both Android and iOS systems.

• Keep in mind that you will be using up mobile data. Pay attention to how much you have left on your mobile plan for the month before browsing or streaming away mindlessly.

2. Visiting a local cafe or library (if it's open)

If all else fails, you can head to your local cafe, library or anywhere that offers public Wi-Fi until your home connection is back up and running. It's probably your best option if you don't have enough mobile data for hotspotting.

What if it's not an NBN outage?

If the issue is isolated to your household only, there are a couple of steps to try to get it working again:

1. Restart your modem

Sometimes it's just as easy as that. Your modem or router might just need to be restarted to re-establish your internet connection with your NBN provider.

Unplug your modem, wait at least 30 seconds and then plug it back in. If the light turns green, you've hit gold and should be good to go.

If your internet connection still isn't back up and running after restarting your modem, consider calling up your NBN provider.

2. Call your NBN provider

If there's no NBN outage in your area and restarting your modem didn't help, it's a good idea to reach out to your NBN provider's technical support team.

They might have a solution, or there could be an issue on their end affecting your connection.

Here's a list of phone numbers for technical support from some of the major NBN providers:

• AGL: 131 245
• Aussie Broadband: 1300 880 905 (Monday–Sunday, 8am–midnight AEST)
• Belong: 1300 235 664 (Monday–Sunday, 8am–8pm AEST)
• Dodo: 13 36 36 (Monday–Sunday, 9am–9pm AEST)
• Exetel: 13 39 38 (Monday–Friday, 9am–9pm AEST)
• iiNet: 13 22 58 (24/7)
• iPrimus: 131 789 (Monday–Sunday, 9am–9pm AEST)
• Kogan: 1300 010 400 (Monday–Sunday, 8am–10pm AEDT)
• Optus: 13 39 37 (Monday–Friday, 9am–6pm caller's local time)
• Origin: 13 24 61 (Monday–Friday, 8am–6pm AEST)
• Southern Phone: 131 464 (Monday–Friday, 8am–6pm AEST)
• Spintel: 1300 303 375 (Monday–Friday, 8am–8pm AEDT)
• Superloop: 1800 578 737 (Monday–Sunday, 8:30am–10:00pm AEST)
• Tangerine: 1800 211 112 (Monday–Sunday, 9am–6pm AEST)
• Telstra: 13 22 00 (Monday–Sunday, 7am–11pm AEST)
• TPG: 1300 997 271 (24/7)
• Vodafone: 1300 650 410

Frequently asked questions

• How do I check if the NBN is down?

  There are a number of ways to do this:

  1. Check the official website from NBN Co where you can see the network status at your address. It should notify you if there's a widespread outage in your area.
  2. See if your NBN provider has updated its website or social channels reporting a network issue.
  3. Visit a third-party site like Down Detector to see if other users in your area are experiencing the same problem.

• Why is my NBN not working?

  There are a few reasons for losing your internet connection:

  • Power outage. When the lights go out, the internet connection automatically gets disconnected as well unless your NBN comes with a back-up battery.
  • Scheduled maintenance. There's a chance you might have missed a notice from your provider about upcoming maintenance works.
  • Network congestion. Too many people online at once can overload the network and cause problems too.
  • Natural events. Rain and wind, among other weather conditions, could bring down a signal pole. This will require maintenance teams to get onsite and assess the problem.

• Is there anything you could do to prevent an NBN outage?

  NBN outages can't really be avoided. However, modems with 4G backup can come in handy during these times. These modems kick in using mobile networks when your NBN is down. Just keep in mind that the connection is usually limited to speeds of 25Mbps.