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TuJu, a disgraceful waste of public funds
https://www.facebook.com/reel/2549179938878461 (Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has acknowledged that locally developed navigation app TuJu is not fully developed, urging Malaysians to use other locally based alternatives for the time being.
He also did not rule out a complete ban on Waze in Malaysia, citing national security concerns over the app’s Israeli headquarters and its subjection to Israeli law.)
Update
Experts want proof TuJu is safer than Waze
Predeep Nambiar
They say the government should disclose how TuJu handles users’ location data and the security tests conducted on the local navigation app.
The government has banned civil servants from using Waze due to security concerns and encouraged the public to switch to local navigation app TuJu.
PETALING JAYA: A technology lawyer has urged the government to disclose how TuJu protects users’ location data and provide evidence that the locally developed navigation app is secure.
Foong Cheng Leong said TuJu continues to raise privacy concerns, pointing to its privacy policy, which states that the app collects users’ location data and shares it with companies providing mapping services.
“Although TuJu’s privacy policy states that such information is anonymised and aggregated, we should know exactly what information is shared with these providers, where the information is stored and who has access to it,” he told FMT.
According to Foong, the Personal Data Protection Act 2010 (PDPA) requires companies to keep personal information safe and sets rules on sending it overseas.
Foong Cheng Leong.
“However, enforcing our laws against foreign companies may be difficult, especially when the data is stored overseas. Further, the PDPA may not necessarily prevent foreign governments from obtaining access to such data under their own laws,” he said.
Foong added that TuJu’s Malaysian origins do not necessarily mean users’ personal data is stored locally or shielded from access by foreign entities.
Universiti Sains Malaysia’s (USM) cybersecurity research centre chief M Selvakumar called for the government to disclose what tests were conducted on TuJu to establish that it was secure.
“If you’re saying that it is more secure, prove it,” he said.
Selvakumar said the concern was not limited to whether hackers could break into an app, but also who could access information about people’s whereabouts and track their movements.
M Selvakumar.
To protect such data, the relevant authorities would need control over the entire system, including the app, the technology behind it, the servers storing the information and how it is handled, he said.
Launched in Nov 2025, TuJu is developed by the Malaysian Highway Authority and Prosignal Consortium Sdn Bhd. It reportedly uses Google mapping data and technology supported by Maybank.
Its introduction has come under scrutiny following the government’s decision to prohibit civil servants from using Waze while performing duties due to security concerns linked to the popular app’s Israeli origins, while encouraging the public to switch to local alternatives, such as TuJu.
However, TuJu has drawn complaints from app review platforms and users on social media, with some reporting inaccurate route guidance, glitches and a lack of real-time traffic information.
Foong said the government was right to take precautions rather than wait for personal information to be accessed or misused.
He said Waze’s privacy policy names Waze Mobile Ltd, an Israeli company, as responsible for users’ personal data.
As it is subject to Israeli law, he said, the company could be required to hand such information to Israeli authorities.
“There is a basis for concern about any government having access, or the possibility of access, to our data, especially foreign governments. We do not know what they will do with it, and they are not accountable to us,” he said.
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 23, 2026: The disgraceful performance of TuJu, a GPS navigation app owned by the Madani Unity Government is nothing but a waste of public funds.
Only God knows how much of public funds have been put into TuJu, a GPS navigation app owned by the Government.
It was launched last year after three years of development.
TuJu (which means “destination” in Bahasa Malaysia) was developed by the Government’s Highway Authority (LLM) in collaboration with Prosignal Consortium Sdn Bhd.
No News Is Bad News reproduces below an article that is circulating in WhatsApp and a news report on TuJu:
THE PEOPLE BEHIND TUJU APP
Welcome to TuJu, a GPS navigation app owned by the Malaysian government and launched last year after three years of development.
TuJu (which means “destination” in Malay) was developed by the government’s Highway Authority (LLM) in collaboration with Prosignal Consortium Sdn Bhd.
Before PM Anwar mentioned TuJu, nobody knew it existed, eventhough the deal was signed way back in 2022 under the BNPN administration.
It's the same like how many Malay words exist but seldom used. Madani, cerakin, membugar, peluncuran, tatakelola, ketimbang, these words have long existed but extremely seldom used, until PM Anwar made use of his annual budget speeches to popularise them.
So......
WHAT IF...... the saga behind TuJu is not as simple as it seems?
WHAT IF...... this is PM Anwar playing 4D chess with his political rivals within the government that are trying to bring him down?
We all that know PM Anwar recently made a comment about switching to TuJu app.
The app crashed and malfunctioned of course, despite a lot public funds being used to build the app. TuJu has since gone offline and the company behind the app has changed its website.
Now the question is, WHO BUILT TUJU?
For some reason, mainstream news mentions LLM (Lembaga Lebuhraya Malaysia). But little spotlight is given to the actual company who built it which is Prosignal Consortium Sdn Bhd (PCSB).
Do you know who sits on the leadership of Prosignal Consortium Sdn Bhd (PCSB)?
1. Group of Executive Chairman
Mohammed Abdullah
• He is the Undang of Johol that sides with Tunku Nadzaruddin. He is part of the UmnoPas group that failed to guling Tuanku Muhriz, the current YDPB of Negeri Sembilan
2. Executive Director
Abdul Rashid Asari
• He is an independent State Assemblyman in the Selangor State Assembly. Former State Chief of Bersatu Selangor.
3. Deputy Chairman
Edzreen Mohd Din
• He was a PA to a Minister in Mahathir's Cabinet between 1999 - 2004. This is during the height of the Mahathir-Anwar political tussle where Mahathir jailed Anwar.
4. Non-Executive Director
Acryl Sani
• He was appointed IGP in May 2021 when Hamzah was Home Minister. A month before that in April 2021, a famous audio dubbed "budak kita" was leaked. The audio was a voice recording of Hamzah arranging and making sure top cops aligned to PN are appointed to important positions. Acryl Sani resigned in mid-2023, just a few months after Anwar became PM.
Now why would PM Anwar "recommend" this app, especially when the company behind it is lined up with very colourful and prominent figures?
Was PM Anwar trying to shine a spotlight on something?
Remember.
Politics is not always straightforward.
It may look like PM Anwar was merely recommending an alternative application, but PM Anwar is not some naive greenhorn politician.
PM Anwar is a veteran politician who rose very quickly through the UMNO ranks, then got beaten down and sent to jail.
He was jailed a total three times but eventually made it to become PM via a gameplan beyond the imagination of normal people.
So, it's not impossible that this is a 4D chess move by PMX to shine the spotlight on a group of people.
Let's see if the MACC comes in next to swoop this company.
Govt urges LLM, Prosignal to explain TuJu glitches
Dineskumar Ragu
Government spokesman Fahmi Fadzil says the clarification is crucial to ensure issues facing TuJu users can be addressed comprehensively.
Government spokesman Fahmi Fadzil said the Malaysian Highway Authority and the TuJu app provider must provide detailed explanations on the root causes of the problems, technical aspects, current app performance, and ongoing or planned corrective measures.
PUTRAJAYA:The government has instructed the Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM) and application provider Prosignal Consortium Sdn Bhd to explain the technical disruption flagged by users of the TuJu navigation application.
Government spokesman Fahmi Fadzil said both parties must provide detailed explanations on the root causes of the problems, technical aspects, current app performance, and ongoing or planned corrective measures.
“Such an explanation is crucial to ensure the issues can be addressed comprehensively, enhancing the reliability of the TuJu application, and boosting public confidence in the usage of local navigation applications,” said Fahmi at a post-Cabinet press conference today.
Fahmi also said that Chief Secretary Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar would chair a meeting with the secretaries-general of several ministries to review the use of navigation applications, including locally developed alternatives, and ensure that Waze is no longer used by civil servants.
The meeting will also examine LLM and Prosignal Consortium’s explanations.
“This includes the technical aspects, functional effectiveness, user experience and an improvement action plan with clear targets and timelines,” Fahmi said.
Yesterday, LLM apologised for disruptions on the TuJu app following a surge in users. LLM said it would work with Prosignal Consortium to identify the root causes of the disruptions, restore system stability and improve the app’s capacity to handle the increased user volume.
Civil servants were banned from using Waze following an Oct 20 letter issued by Shamsul who said the decision was made at a National Cybersecurity Committee meeting earlier that day.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim later encouraged Malaysians to consider using TuJu.
However, TuJu users complained on social media platforms such as Threads about issues with the app, such as unreliable route navigation, a lack of real-time incident data and bugs that affected user experience.
‘Mu nok gi mane?’ TuJu’s folksy welcome turns into anger and frustration
Long before the government's sudden announcement of a security scare in Waze, users had already been venting their frustrations at the so-called alternative for Malaysian road users.
MalaysiaNow
October 22, 2026 1:43 PM
Unreliable directions, missing CCTV feeds, search problems, lack of GPS and complete freezes.
Welcome to TuJu, a GPS navigation app owned by the Malaysian government and launched last year after three years of development.
TuJu (which means “destination” in Malay) was developed by the government’s Highway Authority (LLM) in collaboration with Prosignal Consortium Sdn Bhd.
But it was almost never heard of, let alone used by Malaysians, who are accustomed to apps such as Waze and Google Maps for their daily driving – until a sudden announcement by none other than the prime minister himself, advising Malaysians to use the local app instead.
The reason is that Waze, which has Israeli origins and operates under Israeli laws, has been flagged by the National Security Council for data sovereignty risks and for exposing user location and movement patterns.
“Sensitive government information and Malaysians’ personal data must be protected from exploitation by the Israeli regime in ways that could jeopardise the country’s security and sovereignty,” said Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
This was followed by the government’s ban on civil servants using Waze and its call for Malaysians to switch to TuJu.
The announcement sent thousands of Malaysians to download the app from Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store.
When launched, TuJu displays a welcome message in different Malay dialects and slang, perhaps hoping to put a smile on the user: “Mu nak gi mano?” says one, using the Kelantanese dialect, which means “Where do you want to go?”
But few users have been amused, even long before Anwar's announcement.
On Google’s Play Store, users have given TuJu a low cumulative rating of 2.1 out of 5 stars.
At the heart of the complaints is TuJu’s main supposed function: road directions.
“It cannot find searched location and cannot pinpoint location on map, so how am I going to that location?” asked Mazlan MS in a comment posted in August.
On the App Store, Nadia Gonzales, in a review on July 30, said the app did not adequately display traffic conditions and that its map repeatedly flickered.
“Doesn’t really show how the traffic is, basically it just shows route on the map,” she wrote.
She also warned that because the app is excessively slow, motorists could miss a turn while waiting for the map to recentre.
MonstazI is another disappointed user who was initially excited to show his patriotism.
“I really want to support local products, but if the current result gives me a bad experience or rating, I hope the team can consider improving it with new features and many more useful functions,” he wrote in an App Store review.
IT and gadget news site SoyaCincau listed findings of its own testing on TuJu: confusing turn-by-turn instructions, a lack of lane guidance at junctions and the absence of Android Auto and Apple CarPlay support.
“Things get worse when navigating complicated roads around Kuala Lumpur and the Klang Valley, where multiple highway ramps and exits can be located close to each other,” it said.
“We encountered situations where we needed to keep far left to take the correct exit, but TuJu continued telling us to keep straight.”
Another recurring complaint concerns access to highway CCTV feeds, which motorists use to check traffic conditions before setting off.
“Don’t know who the heck developed and maintaining this app, but they sure are lousy at their job especially on the highway cctv features,” according to a Play Store review left by Raffi Alwi, who said the feeds appeared to work on other apps.
RenE AWP, in a one-star review, said the CCTV feeds failed to load in the morning: “Sucks big time... they don’t even load the feeds in the morning. How the heck I am to plan my morning journey.”
According to TuJu’s developer, the app draws on information from LLM, highway operators, crowd-sourced contributions and other data sources to provide traffic updates and road-related information.
Successful alternatives in other countries
Malaysia is not the first country to flag Waze over user data sovereignty.
Over the years, many countries have developed their own alternatives, with the popularity of the local apps a testament to their reliability.
Some of the most prominent domestic alternatives to Waze and Google Maps are found in countries that have developed their own IT infrastructure independent of Western giant corporations.
In China, apps such as Alibaba’s Gaode Map are among the most popular, alongside others such as Baidu and Tencent.
In Russia, Yandex is considered the market leader, surpassing Google Maps and Waze. It has a detailed urban directory and offline map application, providing even exact building entrances.
Iran's Neshan navigation app is among the popular alternatives that have trumped global players such as Waze and Google Maps.
In Iran, the Neshan and Balad apps are highly rated, and feature real-time traffic data, speed camera alerts and police checkpoint warnings, and their features are integrated into local ride-hailing apps like Snapp and Tapsi. On the Play Store, Neshan has a rating of 4.8, while Balad boasts a full 5-star rating.
Meanwhile in Malaysia, even when faced with a deluge of complaints for months on both the Google and Apple app download sites, there was no direct response from LLM or Prosignal Consortium to users.
Now, as the complaints spill over to social media, LLM has issued a one-page statement.
“LLM apologises for the difficulties experienced by users. LLM, together with the application developer, Prosignal Consortium Sdn Bhd (PCSB), is taking immediate action to identify the root causes of the issues, restore system stability and improve the application’s capacity to accommodate the increase in users.
“At the same time, LLM is paying close attention to user feedback regarding navigation functions, traffic information and the overall user experience.”
Malaysia’s TuJu app struggles after Anwar suggests switching from Waze
The surge in users comes after the prime minister suggested using a local navigation app instead of Waze because of security concerns
The Star
Published: 1:15pm, 22 Oct 2026
Malaysia’s highway authority is working to resolve technical disruptions affecting its TuJu navigation application following a sharp increase in users.
In a statement on Thursday, the Lembaga Lebuhraya Malaysia (LLM) said the matter was being resolved together with the application provider Prosignal Consortium.
LLM said the surge in users came after Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim suggested that the public consider using a locally developed navigation application instead of Waze.
“We apologise for the inconvenience caused, and efforts are under way to identify the cause of the disruptions, restore system stability and improve the application’s capacity to accommodate more users,” the statement added.
LLM said feedback on navigation functions, route information accuracy and the overall user experience was also being taken into account. “Improvements will continue to be made to ensure that TuJu provides a more stable, accurate and user-friendly service,” it added.
Waze, an Israeli mobile satellite navigation application, is seen on a smartphone in Tel Aviv in May 2013. Photo: Reuters
TuJu, introduced on November 26 last year, is a highway navigation application developed by Prosignal in collaboration with LLM. Besides travel information, the application provides updates on traffic conditions, highway facilities and emergency help to support motorists during their journeys.
LLM said efforts to strengthen the application would go beyond system stability to include improvements to navigation functions, information accuracy and its ability to meet users’ needs.
It added that, in line with the government’s focus on strengthening cybersecurity and national digital sovereignty, LLM would continue to work with the Works Ministry, the National Cyber Security Agency and relevant parties to strengthen the local navigation ecosystem.
“This would include addressing security and data governance concerns. We thank the public for their patience and feedback, and we assure users that the issues raised would be taken seriously,” it said.
“Further updates on the recovery and improvement efforts would be shared through LLM’s and TuJu’s official channels.”
Users can submit complaints or feedback about the application via email to feedback@prosignalconsortium.my.
The government is encouraging the public to use TuJu as an alternative for road navigation needs. Anwar had proposed the alternative due to security risks concerning information and data on citizens’ movements, given that Waze is subject to the laws of the Israeli government.
This article was first published by The Star
Joseph Sipalan in Kuala Lumpur
Published: 3:53pm, 21 Oct 2026Updated: 12:20pm, 22 Oct 2026
All civil servants in Malaysia have been banned from using Waze, following a warning by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim of security concerns over the Israeli government’s control of the mobile navigation app.
The government announced the decision after a National Cyber Security Committee (NCSC) meeting chaired by Anwar on Tuesday, according to an official circular.
“In this regard, all ministry secretaries-general and heads of department must make sure this decision is communicated to all officers under their supervision, including agencies and related departments for immediate implementation,” said the circular dated October 20 and issued by the chief secretary to the government.
Waze, which evolved from an earlier project called FreeMap Israel, was acquired by search giant Google in 2013 for US$1.15 billion but remains headquartered in Israel’s economic and tech hub of Tel Aviv.
Its business operations are governed by Israeli law, according to the app’s terms and conditions.
In an earlier statement on Tuesday, Anwar said the NCSC had discussed security risks linked to information and movement data of Malaysian Waze users, given that the app fell exclusively under the jurisdiction of Israeli law.
Security concerns over Waze usage were part of a broader discussion on Malaysia’s preparedness to deal with potential threats stemming from rapid advancements in post-quantum cryptography and autonomous artificial intelligence, the prime minister said.
“The use of local [navigation] application TuJu, developed by the Malaysian Highway Authority, is encouraged as an alternative,” Anwar said.
Palestinians search amid the rubble of damaged residential buildings following an Israeli air-strike on a house in the Sabra neighbourhood, Gaza, earlier in October. Photo: APA Images/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
Waze told This Week in Asia it operated under strict privacy policies to protect user data and comply with global legal data protection standards.
“Claims that Waze collects sensitive government information or allows any entity to exploit personal user data are completely false,” a Waze representative said on Thursday.
However, the ban would be unlikely to do much to stop any potential cyberthreat outlined by the prime minister, said Benjamin Loh, a communication and media studies lecturer at Monash University Malaysia.
Loh said the justification for the ban was weak unless the government was sure that data from Malaysian civil servants who used Waze was being sent to Israel – similar to the reason used by the US to ban Chinese tech giant Huawei.
“Commercial apps are not involved in that kind of power play, and the government should provide evidence that national safety is being compromised if it exists, as this affects regular Malaysians who are still using the app,” Loh said.
The ban on Waze is the latest move by Malaysia to restrict businesses and activities linked to Israel, which Anwar has repeatedly accused of committing genocide after it launched its war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, in retaliation for a deadly assault in southern Israel on the same day by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, the latter of which killed around 1,200 people.
Anwar is seen as Southeast Asia’s most vocal critic of Israel and its closest ally, the US, over the Gaza war, which has killed at least 74,000 people – mostly civilians – and injured nearly 176,000 others, according to the latest data from Gaza’s health ministry.
Malaysia has no diplomatic ties with Israel.
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 24, 2026: It sure is mind-boggling that despite an investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on the Terengganu MB, nothing has developed and all are as quiet as a church mouse.
