Transcript of Remarks by Mrs Josephine Teo, Minister for Communications and Information & Second Minister for Home Affairs – Session 1 of the Global Fraud Summit

1. Secretary Cleverly, Singapore would like to thank the UK for hosting this Summit, which we believe will strengthen global efforts in combating fraud.

2. Tackling fraud is a key priority for Singapore. And fraud can be manifested in many ways, but we are most concerned about three types of fraud-related activities:

(a) First, scams;

(b) Second, ransomware; and

(c) Third is money laundering;

Singapore’s Approach to Fraud Elimination

3. Singapore’s approach to fraud elimination, which we abbreviate as SAFE, has three core tenets. They are:

(a) A for Agile

(b) B for Backed-by-law; and

(c) C for Collaborative.

So as not to belabour the points, we have prepared a summary for colleagues.

4. Let me talk about each in turn.

(a) We remind ourselves to be agile because criminal syndicates change tactics fast.

(b) In Singapore, the Anti-Scam Command is the nerve centre for anti-scam operations. Here, bank staff and the Police work side by side, to carry out funds tracing and freeze scam-tainted bank accounts quickly. In 2023, we froze more than 19,600 bank accounts and recovered more than $100 million Singapore dollars of scam losses.

(c) Last year, we saw malware-enabled scams emerging. Immediately, banks were activated to enhance detection. They found ways to prevent compromised devices from transacting with the banks. This may have inconvenienced some customers but it probably also saved them from grief. So far, such scams are a minority, but we’re staying alert and ready to adjust.

5. The second tenet is to be backed-by-law.

(a) We regularly update our laws to better protect victims, to add deterrence and penalise fraudsters.

(b) Last year, we tightened our laws against money mules and those who abuse our digital national identity Singpass. Next month, the law will go after abusers of SIM cards for scams.

(c) Our Online Criminal Harms Act, which was passed last year, has started to take effect. Among other things, it requires platforms at higher-risk of scams to put in place stronger safeguards and we can talk more about what these safeguards are.

6. Our third tenet is to be collaborative.

(a) We work with multiple stakeholders not only because we have to, but also because we want to.

(b) To tackle ransomware more effectively, we assembled a Task Force, comprising agencies across several domains - cybersecurity, law enforcement and financial regulation.

(c) Colleagues would have heard of the massive money-laundering case in Aug 2023 where we seized more than $3 billion Singapore dollars in assets. As in other instances, the Police worked with many sectoral regulators to conduct intensive intelligence probes and extensive reviews of information. In addition, following the operations, Singapore established an Inter-Ministerial Committee to review and further strengthen our anti-money laundering regime.

7. This approach has helped us make progress.

(a) Last year, for the first time in 5 years, scam losses in Singapore did not spike further.
(b) Likewise for ransomware cases, there was a reprieve.

8. While losses due to scams and ransomware are still considerable, the upward trends have hopefully been arrested and give us room to push back further.

International Cooperation

9. Fraudsters have never let national boundaries stop them. Now, technologies are helping them move farther and faster. This will therefore take much more international cooperation and public-private partnerships.

10. And we would like to suggest three areas of focus:

(a) First, strengthen transnational enforcement and asset recovery. All of us need to build new capabilities.  Singapore’s Anti-Scam Command is one of the several efforts that have worked well, which we gladly introduce to colleagues.

(b) Second, engage the industry to step up and adopt stronger safeguards.  They have more resources, intelligence collected and tools that we can muster.  Equally, they should bear more responsibilities.

(c) Third, proactively share information, including emerging threats, best practices, as well as research and innovation efforts. Collectively, we stand a better chance of winning these tough battles.

Conclusion

11. Mr Chair, fraud is a scourge we are all fighting. We must get better at it, through cooperating with one another and becoming more skilful together.

12. We are confident that this Summit will achieve its objectives under your able leadership and the efforts of the participants. Thank you.