3G shutdown enters final phase

In this edition:

• How is the 3G shutdown progressing?
• Kordia warns of AI security risks
• Giant Southland data centre gets consent

Largely smooth transition despite device challenges

New Zealand’s 3G mobile era is ending. Spark New Zealand will switch off its remaining 3G network on March 31. Rival 2degrees has already closed its network. One New Zealand is in the final stages of a staged regional shutdown that began in late 2025.

The shutdown has been years in the making. Mobile operators say most customers have moved on. But the final stages exposed a few unexpected problems.

Devices prove to be a problem

Analyst Robert Wyrzykowski from Opensignal says technically the transition has been smooth.

“No major surprises from a network perspective,” he says.

The bigger issue has been devices. Some users own relatively modern phones that will not work once 3G disappears.

Many are parallel-imported models bought online. They may support 4G data but cannot make voice calls over 4G using VoLTE.

Owners assumed they were safe because their phone displays a 4G symbol.

“That has been one of the biggest education challenges,” Wyrzykowski says.

Thirty thousand handsets

TCF CEO Paul Brislen, whose organisation represents the industry, says it has also been struck by the sheer variety of phones on local networks.

He says operators initially assumed the market was dominated by a handful of major brands. In practice the number of active handset variants is far higher.

“When you factor in operating systems, hardware and firmware versions there are more than 30,000 different handsets connecting to New Zealand networks,” Brislen says.

The long tail is particularly difficult. Some models appear only once or twice on a network.

Many arrive as parallel imports or devices bought overseas. That makes it impossible to test every configuration against every network scenario.

Brislen says the experience raises a wider question for the future. The industry may need to consider minimum standards for phones connecting to local networks.

The number affected appears small. Some customers only needed to enable VoLTE or update device software.

Mobile operators say most users have already upgraded.

Spark says fewer than two percent of devices on its network still rely on 3G or lack VoLTE support. While that number is relatively small, it represents potential hardship for thousands of people.

Awareness without action

The company has spent years preparing for the shutdown. It has sent more than two million notifications to customers.

Research by the Commerce Commission suggests public awareness is high.

Yet awareness does not always lead to action.

Spark says some customers see the 4G symbol on their phone and assume everything will keep working.

In reality the handset may only use 4G for data. Voice calls still fall back to 3G.

Once the old network disappears those calls will fail.

Operators have encouraged customers to check their phones by texting “3G” to a short code.

They have also offered low-cost replacement devices.

2degrees says communicating the details has proved harder than the earlier 2G shutdown.

The hardest to reach

That earlier change mostly affected very old handsets.

The 3G transition is more complex. Some newer devices require settings changes or software updates.

Community groups warn the impact may still fall unevenly.

Digital Equity Coalition Aotearoa says there is still uncertainty about how many people could lose connectivity.

Operations team member Marie Silberstein says the gap between awareness and action has been wider than expected.

Many people heard warnings about the shutdown but did not realise their own phone might be affected.

Others assumed a newer handset would continue working.

Silberstein says some of the most vulnerable users are also the hardest to reach.

“They are less likely to receive, understand or act on information from a telco,” she says.

Community organisations have helped people check devices and access subsidised upgrades.

Silberstein says the experience offers a lesson for future network changes.

Major infrastructure transitions require community involvement from the start.

Industry outreach alone may not reach everyone.

More change is coming. Copper phone lines are already being retired in many areas as fibre and wireless networks take over.

The 3G shutdown shows how complicated even well-planned technology transitions can be.

Kordia: Staff AI use emerges as cyber risk

Nearly a quarter of New Zealand businesses (24 percent) say staff improperly using AI tools has become a major security risk.

Kordia’s latest business cyber security report surveyed about 250 organisations with more than 50 staff. It found 24 percent rank improper AI use among their top cyber security challenges. The figure is up from 16 percent a year earlier.

The study says cyber attacks exploiting AI vulnerabilities have more than doubled in the past year. They rose from 6 percent in 2024 to 14 percent in 2025.

Overall attacks appear to have fallen. Forty-four percent of businesses report an incident in the past year, down from 59 percent previously.

But the impact remains serious. Seventeen percent say personal information was accessed or stolen. One in five incidents involved financial extortion.

Eight percent of affected organisations paid a ransom. Among those asked to pay, 42 percent agreed to the demand.

Disruption is common. About a fifth of businesses say attacks stopped them accessing systems or serving customers.

The findings broadly match data from the National Cyber Security Centre. It reports fewer incidents in recent years but rising financial losses.

Businesses also want stronger policy responses. More than a third favour mandatory reporting of major cyber attacks. Others support harsher penalties for companies that fail to protect personal data.

In other news...

• AI reduces on hold wait times — The Post.
  Next time you call, you could be talking to a bot.
• Amazon wants US regulators to reject SpaceX data centre application — The Register.
  Data centre giant opposes orbiting competition.

Datagrid pivots to AI as it secures consent

Datagrid New Zealand has secured resource consent for its planned Makarewa data centre which it is now calling an ‘AI factory’.

The facility would use up to 280MW of power and the Tasman Ring Network cable landing at Oreti Beach.

Tasman Ring would give the South Island its first direct international submarine data link. It strengthens the region’s data centre case.

Chorus Express Connect adds CDC Silverdale and Datacom Gloucester

Chorus announced availability of its Express Connect data centre service at two more sites: CDC Silverdale and Datacom Gloucester (Christchurch). The company says these join previously announced connections at Datacentre220 and T4 Group Tihi and will shortly be joined by connections to Datacom Wellington and CDC Hobsonville.

One NZ picks Highlight for performance visibility

One New Zealand has chosen the Highlight Service Observability Platform to give managed service customers clearer visibility into network performance, service levels and value.

Highlight says this means One’s service desk can “move beyond traditional IT service management processes to achieve centralised visibility as well as offering customers optional access to the Highlight dashboard for full transparency”.

It replaces time-intensive manual reporting by scheduling automatic reports.

Foreign tech companies behind NZ online scam code

Tech giants Google, Meta and TikTok are founding signatories of the New Zealand Online Scams Code along with Tech New Zealand.

The voluntary code aims to tackle online scams, spanning blocking, reporting, takedowns, advertising, email/messaging, law enforcement, intelligence sharing, consumer communications and future-proofing. It is based on Australia's Online Scams Code, developed by Australian industry association Digital Industry Group Inc.

Catriona Robinson to head National Cyber Security Centre

Catriona Robinson, currently the associate deputy secretary immigration at MBIE, is the new NCSC head. She previously spent five years at the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (DPMC) as the director of National Security Systems.

This time last year the ComCom recommended deregulating rural copper

The Commerce Commission issued a draft recommendation to remove regulations governing Chorus’ copper network in areas beyond the reach of the UFB fibre network.

Five years ago Vocus called time on its planned New Zealand IPO, a move that led eventually to the merger of its companies, by then under the Orcon name, with 2degrees.

From 10 years ago:

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