The use of mobile network ‘big data’ can play a key role in tackling infectious disease, disasters and environmental crises, but the privacy of individuals remains paramount, says Mats Granryd, Director General of the GSMA.
The ways in which our personal data is used and safeguarded in an increasingly digital world is a topic never far from the headlines.
Some of the best-known companies in the world have become embroiled in controversy over this issue. Take Facebook, for example. In March, Cambridge Analytica, a UK-based consultancy, acquired data on millions of Facebook users and their friends, spurring serious international dialogues about consumer privacy rights and expectations.
Such controversies serve to undermine trust in digital services in the view of consumers, who – quite rightly – expect stewards of their personal information to treat it with the utmost care and sensitivity.
Regulators are focusing on this area too. In Europe, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) became enforceable from May 2018, strengthening data protection for people in the EU.
In this climate, it is right that consumers expect clarity on what data is being shared, for what purpose, how long it will be stored, and their options should they want to opt out.
But what if allowing a third party to use your data could save a life?
That’s what could be at stake in the context of the big data produced by mobile networks, which can be used, for example, to allow governments and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to track and predict the spread of diseases such as tuberculosis in the developing world.
The information that flows through mobile networks can be an extremely valuable and reliable source of data. Mobile operators understand the utility of this data, and the need to protect it. A balance must therefore be struck between collecting actionable data and safeguarding personal information.
Harnessing the power of mobile big data to deliver social good
Mobile operators have been using data about movements of users to plan their own phone networks for many years, for instance, to ensure they have enough infrastructure in place to support a major sports event.
This data is useful for other third parties too. Thanks to advances in tools for analysing large data sets, operators have started to leverage anonymised, aggregated data, combined with other contextual data sets and analytics, to provide unique insights to other organisations, such as, transport and retail planners.
In addition to commercial applications, it has become clear that these insights can be a vital tool for organisations involved in humanitarian work that need to understand how populations are displaced by disasters or how epidemics spread.
And because mobile has unprecedented global reach – more than two-thirds of the world’s population is connected to a mobile network – mobile networks are able to provide incredible insights into human behaviour patterns that in many cases are unavailable from any other technology or data source.
The GSMA’s Big Data for Social Good (BD4SG) initiative was set up last year to focus on this opportunity. Backed by 20 global mobile operators with a presence in more than 120 markets, and working closely with agencies and partners, the initiative has completed several successful high-profile projects to develop real-world solutions to many of the world’s most pressing health, humanitarian and environmental problems.
Balancing the data privacy conundrum
But what does this mean for privacy – are mobile operators now handing over your location and movements to third parties?
The answer is no. By aggregating and anonymising the data collected by their networks, operators can provide relief agencies with valuable insights without compromising individuals’ privacy. The mobile industry’s long-standing commitment to privacy is reflected in the GSMA Mobile Privacy Principles, which describe how mobile consumers’ privacy should be respected and protected when they use mobile services and applications. These principles serve as a foundation for our consideration of big data privacy issues, and informed the development of a Code of Conduct for the BD4SG initiative.
Under the Code of Conduct, the operators participating in BD4SG trials anonymise and aggregate all data prior to sharing it with any third parties. It also includes guidelines on data handling, access, security obligations, and ethical considerations for participating mobile operators.
When governments consider privacy rules in response to technological evolution, we believe that frameworks based on privacy principles, through which risk can be assessed and mitigated, can provide the right environment for innovative use of data.
Big data for social good in action
In India, one successful BD4SG project has been underway, exploring how insights from mobile data can improve planning to control tuberculosis (TB), one of the country’s biggest killers.
In collaboration with Bharti Airtel, India’s leading mobile operator, and Be He@lthy, Be Mobile (a joint initiative between the WHO and the ITU), the BD4SG programme developed a proof of concept (PoC) in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, using mobile network data to help pinpoint geographical locations at risk of increasing TB incidence. These two states have a combined population of nearly 270 million, from which a sample size of around 35 million people was used.
As TB is spread through prolonged or recurring contact with infected people, the project used anonymised, aggregated mobile network data from Airtel to show regular population movements, such as commuting to work, going to school and university, and other regular daily journeys. This was complemented with publicly available data from the health authorities on the number of new TB cases per clinic. The study was therefore able to identify areas reporting low numbers of TB cases, but that are strongly connected to TB ‘hotspots’ by regular movements of people.
As a result, the study was able to identify a number of specific areas where instances of TB were likely to be undetected or unreported, enabling health authorities to accurately deploy interventions such as vaccination programmes, awareness campaigns and mobile clinics in these locations.
Working towards a sustainable future
The GSMA is representing the mobile industry at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York this week, where we will provide a platform for dialogue between mobile industry leaders, heads of state, global agencies and governments to further accelerate mobile’s contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The use of mobile network big data has a key role to play in meeting many of the challenges the world is facing. At the same time it is crucial that we continue to use data responsibly and protect citizens’ privacy, and we are committed to working with governments around the world to ensure that we have the right regulatory framework in place to enable this.
And by working together, we will have the opportunity to harness the power of innovative technologies and big data insights to improve the wellbeing of our planet and our people.
