Kaitlyn Cimino / Android Authority
TL;DR A resident of Sydney, Australia, lost their life after being unable to reach emergency services.
After a preliminary investigation, the user’s telecom operator has claimed they were using an “unsupported Samsung handset.”
Certain outdated Samsung phones in Australia are known to drop calls when calling 000, Australia’s emergency line.
Samsung and major carriers in the region have urged consumers to update their phones or replace them.
Update: Nov 20, 2025 (1:15 AM ET): Samsung reached out to Android Authority, clarifying its stance and urging users to update their devices immediately to protect themselves against a similar mishap. The following statement was shared with us by a Samsung spokesperson: We strongly encourage customers to keep their mobile devices updated with the latest software, as this is critical to maintaining the highest standards of safety, security, and performance. Original article: Nov 19, 2025 (09:44 AM ET): An Australian citizen recently lost their life after being unable to call 000, Australia’s national emergency service line, on their old Samsung phone. The deceased was a customer of Lebara, a carrier that’s part of Australia’s TPG Telecom Limited and operates on Vodafone’s network in the region, and was unable to call Triple Zero despite having an active service.
TPG informed the ASX (Australian Stock Exchange) that the incident occurred on November 13 and that no network outage was detected at the time. According to The Guardian, TPG claimed the incident occurred because the victim’s call failed to connect, as they were using one of the 70-plus Samsung handsets deemed incompatible for dialing the emergency number.
“Early investigations indicate that the failed calls were due to the customer’s Samsung device operating on software that was not compatible with making Triple Zero calls on the network,” TPG said in a statement.
“Samsung recently identified that certain, older devices required a software update to enable Triple Zero functionality on TPG Telecom’s mobile network. When TPG Telecom became aware of these handsets on its network, we communicated with customers to urgently update affected devices. Handsets not updated are blocked after a period of 28 – 35 days from the first contact to the customer, as required under new regulations,” the carrier added.
The mishap follows a broader service outage of another major Australian telco, Optus, back in September that prevented several consumers from reaching triple zero and was reportedly linked to at least three fatalities, including that of an infant. The incident prompted a parliamentary inquiry, after which three of the largest Aussie telcos joined forces to list 71 unsupported Samsung models. The carriers, including Telstra, Optus, and TPG, had also urged consumers to update their handsets by November 7 or risk being blocked on their networks.
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