A Digital Divide by Postcode: Rural Australia and the Right to Meaningful Connectivity

Amrita Chahal | Cyber, Tech and Space Fellow

Image sourced from Jay Lee via Unsplash

More than a decade ago, a United Nations Special Rapporteur report outlined two dimensions to internet access under human rights law: access to online content without any restrictions except in permitted cases, and the availability of the necessary infrastructure and communication technologies to access services in the first place. While discussions about digital rights often focus on the first dimension, the second is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore in Australia. Growing concerns about the digital divide between urban and rural, regional and remote communities are ringing alarm bells about the adequacy of Australian telecommunications services.

Across these rural, regional and remote communities, thousands of residents have reported unreliable connection, service outages and insufficient infrastructure, raising broader questions about Australia’s human rights obligations and the future of telecommunications policies. These policies are increasingly impacting participation in Australian society, raising a fundamental question: does Australia have the necessary digital infrastructure for all people to meaningfully exercise their rights?

The Digital Divide

The consequences of this digital divide extend well beyond mere inconvenience. Over a period of two years, more than 2,300 consumers from regional, rural and remote areas reported that their mobile service has unreliable coverage, was unavailable in places they needed it, or had become less usable as networks and equipment have changed, leaving many feeling frustrated, isolated or without confidence in Australia’s telecommunications services. Unreliable access to the internet has also meant that remote access students may have difficulty engaging with online learning materials.

Importantly, the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman’s 2026 report suggests the divide runs far deeper than just slow connection; an analysis of thousands of complaints from regional, rural and remote areas revealed outages and unreliable services create significant safety risks and disruptions. Some consumers living in mobile black spots have reported being unable to contact emergency services during bushfires. This vulnerability becomes particularly acute during emergencies, such as when, on 8 July 2026, Telstra’s nationwide mobile and data outage blocked more than 600 Triple Zero calls and left millions without service.

The significance of these failures is difficult to reconcile with a society increasingly dependent on digital infrastructure.

From Service to a Right

The Ombudsman’s key recommendations include an overhaul of how telecommunications services are regulated, arguing for a more unified regulatory approach rather than separate frameworks for individual telecommunications services. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has also recently announced an inquiry into regional mobile coverage. These developments raise broader policy questions and offer an opportunity for Australia to adopt a rights-based approach, treating reliable telecommunications services as essential infrastructure for equal participation in Australian society. The idea of a rights-based approach has been explored by human rights scholars, some of whom identify access to digital infrastructure and access to digital literacy as its two components.

These initiatives show an undeniable opportunity to reconsider Australian legislation around telecommunications services. Simultaneously, the overwhelming anecdotal evidence reveals connectivity can no longer be regarded as a matter of convenience; rather, it has become an enabling condition for exercising rights and participating in public life. It is important to note that a rights-based approach would not require a new right to telecommunications services to be established; existing rights such as access to information, education and equality are increasingly exercised through digital technologies and telecommunications infrastructure. When geographical location determines whether someone can reliably contact emergency services, attend online classes or access healthcare, it follows that equal, effective connectivity is inseparable from the practical exercise of these rights and Australia’s existing human rights obligations. A rights-based model of universal telecommunications access could offer Australians equal opportunities, regardless of their postcode.

A United Nations Special Rapporteur report warns against “perpetuating” the “digital divide” between people with effective access to digital and information technologies and those with limited or no access. The report asserts that ensuring universal access to the Internet should be a priority for all states, tying it to concerns surrounding freedom of expression. Australian institutions, including the Australian Human Rights Commission, have similarly considered domestic policy on access to the internet through a human rights lens. Nonetheless, Australia’s current framework for planning and developing digital infrastructure lacks a consistent rights-based approach, inadvertently treating meaningful engagement with digital services as a privilege, not a right.

Policies surrounding rural, remote and regional communities cannot be separated from their social, economic and racial dimensions. Future infrastructure developments emerging from such a policy change could include ensuring meaningful consultations with affected communities, establishing minimum standards for reliability and affordability, and stronger accountability for when telecommunication services fail to meet set standards. Rather than placing responsibility solely on providers, a universal rights-based approach would require coordinated actions across government and industry to ensure that digital infrastructure is available to all communities.

Conclusion

Australia’s digital divide is no longer simply an infrastructure problem; it is a question of quality, resilience and access to fundamental aspects of public life. When access to education, healthcare, and emergency services depends on the reliability of a telecommunications connection, that connection, and the systems surrounding it, become a matter of human rights policy. By utilising existing momentum for technological regulation, Australia has an opportunity to move beyond a model that treats reliable connectivity as a matter of geographical circumstance. A rights-based model of universal telecommunications access could guarantee reliable connectivity and meaningful exercise of existing rights, regardless of where Australians live.

Amrita Chahal is a recent graduate of the University of New South Wales, where she completed a Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Media (Communications and Journalism) with Distinction. She holds a Certificate in Transnational Law from the University of Geneva, strengthening her understanding of Australia’s role in international affairs.

Amrita has professional experience in law, public policy and international engagement. She serves in the U.S. Consulate General Youth Advisory Council. Additionally, Amrita has worked in refugee law, youth justice and human rights, shaping her interest in considering regulatory frameworks and international relations through a humanitarian lens. She is particularly interested in exploring how Australia can support the responsible global governance of emerging technologies.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Young Australians in International Affairs. AI tools were used by this author for grammar checks, but all content is original, and no plagiarism has been used in the preparation of this article.