UPDATE 1-New York AG opens probe into AT&T wireless outage

(Adds no immediate AT&T comment, James comment, photos)

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON, Feb 29 (Reuters) - New York Attorney General Letitia James said Thursday her office is investigating the cause of last week's AT&T wireless outage for up to 12 hours as well as the telecom firm's response.

The Federal Communications Commission is also investigating the Feb. 22 outage. AT&T said Saturday it would provide $5 billing credits for consumers who were impacted but has not disclosed how many customers temporarily lost service. The outage impacted some emergency 911 calls, local officials said.

An initial AT&T review found the outage was caused by the application and execution of an incorrect process while working to expand the network, the company said, ruling out a cyberattack. AT&T says its 5G network reaches around 290 million people across the United States.

"Nationwide outages are not just an inconvenience, they can be dangerous, and it’s critical that we protect consumers when an outage occurs," James said.

AT&T did not immediately comment.

(Reporting by David Shepardson, Editing by Nick Zieminski)