TORONTO: Many Canadians were without internet and mobile service Friday due to a widespread network outage. This disrupted police, court and business services. People flocked to coffee shops offering Wi-Fi and rushed to get work done. RogersCommunications Inc. claimed it restored service late in the afternoon and that its teams are working hard to get everyone up and running as soon as possible.
The outage began in the morning and continued into the evening. This disrupted services for retailers, credit card processors as well as police, courts and airlines.
The company did not provide any explanation as to what caused the outage, how many customers were affected or where they were located.
“We are aware of how dependent you are on our networks. Today, we have let our customers down. We are making every effort to get this fixed as quickly as possible. We will keep you informed about when services will return online.
TorontoGo Transit tweeted that some parts of its system had been affected and that fares couldn’t be purchased with credit or debit cards. E-tickets could also be unavailable, the company warned.
Canadians dial 911 to alert police in Ottawa and Toronto of possible connection problems.
Ottawa Police tweeted that “If your call does not work, please try again” or that you call from another landline or cellphone with a different provider.
The suspension of The due to the outage was necessary WeekndThe Rogers Centre in Toronto was the tour stop.
Only two dates were set for the Toronto date. Canada.
Scarborough Health Network operates eight satellite locations in Toronto and three hospitals. It requested that staff and physicians report to work for any on-call shifts, until the disruption is over.
Peter Nygard was denied bail in Montreal for sex related charges. The fashion mogul is currently being held in Toronto. His bail hearing will take place next week.
Service Canada tweeted that they were also affected by outage. They said that call centers and offices, such as those that issue passports to customers, were also affected.
This outage will exacerbate passport delays which have seen Canadians stranded outside Service Canada offices for long periods of time while the government deals with a backlog.
Canada Border Services Agency has warned that submissions to the ArriveCAN App may not be possible – an essential requirement for all cross-border travelers.
Interac, which handles electronic financial transactions, caused many businesses and retailers to have difficulty accepting payments.
Confederation Bridge was closed Friday morning. It connects the provinces Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick. Canada’s Wonderland, Vaughan, Ontario stated that amusement park visitors could only pay by credit card.
Downdetector is a website that records outages. It showed that people began reporting problems with Rogers’ service at 4:30 AM EDT, and that by 7 AM, there had been over 20,000 reports.
Rogers customers struggled to find internet service and rushed to the coffee shops to exchange stories.
Kathryn Bowen (age 30, a freelance fashion designer) spent Friday morning videoconferencing with clients at a Starbucks in Toronto’s financial district.
“I don’t know where to go. If I go home, I don’t have an internet connection. said Bowen. “I cannot even go outside to text anyone, Rogers doesn’t work on my smartphone either, so I’m just sitting here until it dies basically.”
Roseanna Chen (27 years old) relied on a coffee shop after the internet outage at her workplace. However, the cafe’s wireless network became unstable due to the influx of people.
Chen, an accounting associate at Imperial PFS Canada said that “we’re trying to find out if (the office Wi Fi) comes back.”
“If it doesn’t work, we’ll probably head home. However, my internet is out at home.”
Three major carriers dominate Canada’s telecom industry – Rogers Corp. BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. Academics have long questioned the dominance of these large companies in Canada and called for greater competition for internet and mobile services in Canada.
“The outage is illuminating Canada’s general lack of competition for telecommunications,” said Vass BednarMcMaster University, McMaster University’s executive director for the master of public policy program.
Francois-Philippe Champagne, Federal Industry Minister, stated in a statement that the government was closely monitoring the situation and had informed Rogers that “how important it” was that the matter be resolved quickly and that the company provide prompt and clear communication to all those affected.
In the meantime, the Public Interest Advocacy Centre requested that the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission open an inquiry under the Telecommunications Act to determine the cause of the outage.
The commission stated that it was reviewing the request.
Telus was not affected by the outage but Rogers’ rival warned that customers might experience slower than normal data speeds due to increased use by customers who don’t have access to the internet at home.
The outage began in the morning and continued into the evening. This disrupted services for retailers, credit card processors as well as police, courts and airlines.
The company did not provide any explanation as to what caused the outage, how many customers were affected or where they were located.
“We are aware of how dependent you are on our networks. Today, we have let our customers down. We are making every effort to get this fixed as quickly as possible. We will keep you informed about when services will return online.
TorontoGo Transit tweeted that some parts of its system had been affected and that fares couldn’t be purchased with credit or debit cards. E-tickets could also be unavailable, the company warned.
Canadians dial 911 to alert police in Ottawa and Toronto of possible connection problems.
Ottawa Police tweeted that “If your call does not work, please try again” or that you call from another landline or cellphone with a different provider.
The suspension of The due to the outage was necessary WeekndThe Rogers Centre in Toronto was the tour stop.
Only two dates were set for the Toronto date. Canada.
Scarborough Health Network operates eight satellite locations in Toronto and three hospitals. It requested that staff and physicians report to work for any on-call shifts, until the disruption is over.
Peter Nygard was denied bail in Montreal for sex related charges. The fashion mogul is currently being held in Toronto. His bail hearing will take place next week.
Service Canada tweeted that they were also affected by outage. They said that call centers and offices, such as those that issue passports to customers, were also affected.
This outage will exacerbate passport delays which have seen Canadians stranded outside Service Canada offices for long periods of time while the government deals with a backlog.
Canada Border Services Agency has warned that submissions to the ArriveCAN App may not be possible – an essential requirement for all cross-border travelers.
Interac, which handles electronic financial transactions, caused many businesses and retailers to have difficulty accepting payments.
Confederation Bridge was closed Friday morning. It connects the provinces Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick. Canada’s Wonderland, Vaughan, Ontario stated that amusement park visitors could only pay by credit card.
Downdetector is a website that records outages. It showed that people began reporting problems with Rogers’ service at 4:30 AM EDT, and that by 7 AM, there had been over 20,000 reports.
Rogers customers struggled to find internet service and rushed to the coffee shops to exchange stories.
Kathryn Bowen (age 30, a freelance fashion designer) spent Friday morning videoconferencing with clients at a Starbucks in Toronto’s financial district.
“I don’t know where to go. If I go home, I don’t have an internet connection. said Bowen. “I cannot even go outside to text anyone, Rogers doesn’t work on my smartphone either, so I’m just sitting here until it dies basically.”
Roseanna Chen (27 years old) relied on a coffee shop after the internet outage at her workplace. However, the cafe’s wireless network became unstable due to the influx of people.
Chen, an accounting associate at Imperial PFS Canada said that “we’re trying to find out if (the office Wi Fi) comes back.”
“If it doesn’t work, we’ll probably head home. However, my internet is out at home.”
Three major carriers dominate Canada’s telecom industry – Rogers Corp. BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. Academics have long questioned the dominance of these large companies in Canada and called for greater competition for internet and mobile services in Canada.
“The outage is illuminating Canada’s general lack of competition for telecommunications,” said Vass BednarMcMaster University, McMaster University’s executive director for the master of public policy program.
Francois-Philippe Champagne, Federal Industry Minister, stated in a statement that the government was closely monitoring the situation and had informed Rogers that “how important it” was that the matter be resolved quickly and that the company provide prompt and clear communication to all those affected.
In the meantime, the Public Interest Advocacy Centre requested that the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission open an inquiry under the Telecommunications Act to determine the cause of the outage.
The commission stated that it was reviewing the request.
Telus was not affected by the outage but Rogers’ rival warned that customers might experience slower than normal data speeds due to increased use by customers who don’t have access to the internet at home.
