CYBERJAYA – The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) says it uses anonymised mobile phone data to reduce the need for large-scale, expensive, and time-consuming physical surveys, without compromising individual privacy.
National Big Data Analytics Centre (NBDAC) senior director Jamaliah Jaafar said the mobile phone data (MPD) initiative, facilitated by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), offers a practical and cost-effective alternative to traditional data collection methods.
“The potential of MPD is very significant for producing official statistics,” she said at a media briefing at the MCMC headquarters in Cyberjaya, here, yesterday.
“It is among the best practices in the era of big data and digital transformation, using alternative data sources instead of solely depending on surveys and censuses.”
Jamaliah explained that DOSM traditionally relied on field enumerators to gather information directly from respondents, which involved high financial costs, extensive manpower, and long processing times.
“With MPD, the data is digital and already available, which reduces the likelihood of human error during entry and improves the timeliness of our statistical outputs,” she said. “It also allows for more granular data at the district level, and we don’t need respondents to answer lengthy questionnaires.”
On privacy concerns, she stressed that DOSM does not retain any personal or raw mobile data and is strictly governed by the Statistics Act 1965 (Amendment 1989).
“We can access the information, but we do not keep the data. The Act clearly states that all collected information is confidential. Only aggregated data is published,” she said.
She reiterated that all MPD received by DOSM is already anonymised by mobile network operators before being shared, meaning it contains no names, identification numbers, or contact details of users.
“This is not personal data. It is aggregate data that helps us see trends, not track individuals. DOSM is committed to upholding data privacy,” she said.
The initiative is facilitated by MCMC, which obtains fully anonymised and aggregated data from mobile network operators. These telcos are required to strip the data of names, identification numbers, and personal addresses before passing it on.
Present at the media briefing yesterday were MCMC deputy managing director Datuk Zurkarnain Mohd Yasin, and MCMC commissioner Derek Fernandez, among others.
The MPD initiative was approved by Cabinet in April 2023 and is intended to strengthen data-driven policymaking, especially in tourism and ICT planning. It was developed in consultation with the International Telecommunication Union and other international bodies.
The briefing comes amid a wave of public concern following media reports questioning the legality and transparency of the MPD programme, which is led by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) in collaboration with DOSM.
The initiative, approved by Cabinet in April 2023, is part of a broader move to enhance evidence-based policymaking using anonymised, aggregated data derived from mobile network activity. It has been endorsed by the Economy Ministry and the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry.
Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil previously clarified that the data collection is intended solely to support DOSM’s official statistics and does not include any personally identifiable information.
At the briefing yesterday, Zurkarnain also explained that data is anonymised at the mobile network operator level and cannot be used to identify individuals, either directly or indirectly. He said that only a small group of authorised officers within the statistics division of MCMC are granted access to the anonymised datasets. — June 10, 2025
The post MCMC facilitates data sharing with DOSM to cut survey costs appeared first on Scoop.