Telecom companies can now report network outages with one click, or not at all

The US communications regulator is making it much easier for telecom companies to report network outages during disasters. Companies will use a single form, can click a button to say nothing changed, and some will no longer have to report at all. This means the government will get less detailed information about how communication networks fail during emergencies.

The government relies on these reports to understand how communication networks hold up during disasters and where they need to improve. If companies report less, or less detailed, information, it becomes harder to identify systemic weaknesses. This change shifts the burden of reporting away from companies and onto the public, who will have less visibility into critical infrastructure failures.