Potentially thousands of Telstra customers are unable to make calls or send text messages right now after their older iPhone devices received an iOS update which appears to have included some configuration errors in the Carrier settings.

Earlier this week Apple announced quietly they had expanded their updates to more devices they identified needing software updates to ensure they were not suffering from issues which may affect calls to Triple Zero in some unique and quite rare circumstances.

Those devices included older iPhones ranging from the original SE through to the iPhone 12, as well as Apple Watches from the Series 6 though to the more recent Series 10 and Ultra 2:

iPhone

  • iPhone SE (1st generation)
  • iPhone SE (2nd generation)
  • iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus
  • iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus
  • iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus
  • iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus
  • iPhone X
  • iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max
  • iPhone XR
  • iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max
  • iPhone 12, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max

Apple Watch

  • Apple Watch SE 2
  • Apple Watch Series 6
  • Apple Watch Series 7
  • Apple Watch Series 8
  • Apple Watch Series 9
  • Apple Watch Series 10
  • Apple Watch Ultra
  • Apple Watch Ultra 2

Apple has today (Thursday) confirmed the issue, telling EFTM “We are aware that some customers on the Telstra network in Australia are unable to make and receive calls on iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X after updating to iOS 16.7.13.”

Importantly, they go on to say “We have identified a fix that will be available in an upcoming software update.”

There is no timeline for that update to roll out, however we’d expect it to happen today, if not tomorrow morning.

For those Telstra customers affected, it is also noted now that you may see SOS Only mode appear in your mobile settings, if this is the case your phone CAN and WILL call Triple Zero, but you are advised it may take some time (up to a minute) to actually connect via another network, so wait on the line even if it’s silent.

There have been multiple reports of issues from users on Apple’s support community pages, including one as far back as Monday evening.

EFTM understands there is no impact for Optus or TPG/Vodafone customers.

We anticipate a software fix as soon as this evening, so while it’s frustrating, the best advice for right now is to wait, and ensure you have a WiFi connection to allow you to check Settings, General, Software Update tomorrow for any available download.