FOI 26-2911 IR – Documents relating to the MBS/BPS dataset publication in 2016

Written by Claude Haiku 5.5 from the extracted text on 16 Oct 2026. It can miss or misread redacted and scanned pages. Check the source before relying on it.

The release comprises documents on the 2016 publication of the 10% MBS/PBS sample dataset on data.gov.au. It includes a University of Melbourne paper (Culnane, Rubinstein and Teague, 8 September 2016) showing that the method used to encrypt service provider ID numbers could be reversed using only public information, so all provider IDs were decrypted, while patient IDs were not tested. Also included are a Data61 re-identification risk analysis of the 2014 MBS 10% data, and an independent review of the decryption. The review found about 1,500 downloads before access was suspended, and cites weak data governance, absent formal approval and no pre-release testing of confidentialisation. It also records that a 2015 review of the MBS sample was proposed but never commissioned. No PBS drug listings or clinical efficacy data are included.