The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) concluded its Measuring Broadband Australia (MBA) program last month, which involved distributing specialized routers to volunteers to test and measure broadband performance across the country’s fixed-line networks. The program, which began in 2020, distributed thousands of SamKnows whiteboxes to participants who collected data on internet speeds and performance metrics. According to the ACCC’s December 2020 report, over 2,600 devices had been distributed by that time, with the agency anticipating the eventual distribution of approximately 4,000 units throughout the program’s duration.
Following the program’s conclusion on June 30, the ACCC and SamKnows (now owned by Cisco) disabled all deployed routers, rendering them inoperative. Volunteers received notifications in mid-June informing them that the devices would be deactivated and that user data would be deleted in accordance with licensing agreements. The decision has drawn criticism from participants who note that the routers remain physically functional and could serve alternative purposes.
Program volunteers have highlighted that the whiteboxes operate on a custom version of OpenWRT, an open-source Linux-based operating system for embedded devices, making them suitable for reconfiguration as standard Wi-Fi routers. At least one volunteer reported successfully reflashing their device to restore full functionality. This technical capability has prompted questions about why the devices were disabled rather than released to users through a final firmware update, particularly given environmental concerns about electronic waste.
Neither SamKnows, Cisco, nor the ACCC provided detailed explanations for the decision to disable the routers. When contacted, Cisco directed inquiries to the ACCC, citing contractual agreements. The ACCC’s statement confirmed the devices were disabled upon program conclusion but did not address why alternative options were not pursued. Volunteers are being directed to dispose of the disabled devices through local e-waste recycling services. A comparable broadband testing initiative in the United States distributed 9,000 routers for an FCC-related study in 2011, though the ultimate disposition of those devices has not been publicly disclosed.
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