CRA initiates full probe into Vodafone outage

*Customers eligible for compensation for the disruption of service
*Technical issues while performing service upgrade caused breakdown
*Services restored partially until late Monday evening, says CRA

The Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) said on Monday it had initiated a full investigation into the outage of Vodafone Qatar’s network, which left many of its customers without access to voice calls and data services. 
The outage started around 3.30am Monday and was restored partially until late evening, CRA said in a statement.
The authority has requested Vodafone to provide a detailed investigation report by Thursday (July 20), addressing violations of the service continuity and customer information obligations stated in its licence. 
Vodafone has also been requested to address the following points in the report: main cause of the outage, nature and extent of the impact on customers, steps taken to resolve the issue, and measures and procedures put in place to avoid such outages in the future.
In addition, Vodafone is bound by its licence to provide customers with appropriate compensation for the disruption of service, CRA noted.
According to tweets by Vodafone Qatar earlier in the day, the service provider said they faced the current outage while performing a critical service upgrade to the network.
"All Vodafone teams are working tirelessly to restore service to the network as soon as possible. We sincerely apologise for the delay and will keep you updated with any progress."
An earlier tweet said: "We are facing technical issues that may affect your access to our network. We are working to resolve this issue. Thank you for your patience."
Several Vodafone customers have been seeking answers to the disruption in service through social media accounts, particularly Twitter.
CRA regulates the communications, information technology and postal sectors, and access to digital media in Qatar. CRA uses its regulatory powers to protect consumer rights, ensure competition, manage the resolution of disputes, and manage the electromagnetic spectrum.