Enhancing ScamShield with Improved Anti-scam Measures and Accessibility to Vulnerable Groups
Ministry of Home AffairsSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the relevance of the ScamShield application, its potential enhancements, and financial support for businesses using the Singapore SMS Sender ID Registry (SSIR). In response to Mr Yip Hon Weng, Minister for Home Affairs Mr K Shanmugam explained that ScamShield remains a vital layer of defense by blocking scam calls and allowing users to report suspicious messages. He highlighted that the Police and community volunteers conduct targeted outreach to encourage senior citizens to download the application while authorities study ways to simplify the reporting process. Regarding the SSIR, the Minister announced that registration will become mandatory from 31 January 2023 to further strengthen defenses against spoofed SMSes. To support smaller organizations, the Infocomm Media Development Authority has reduced registration fees to $200 per Sender ID to ensure the system remains affordable for all businesses.
Transcript
3 Mr Yip Hon Weng asked the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether the ScamShield mobile app is still relevant since telcos will be required to implement anti-scam filters; (b) whether ScamShield will be enhanced to improve anti-scam measures; (c) how will the Government increase the download rate of ScamShield among vulnerable groups; and (d) whether grants will be offered to businesses using SMS sender IDs and who have financial hardship to offset costs for registering with the Singapore SMS Sender ID Registry.
Mr K Shanmugam: The ScamShield mobile application was launched as part of the Government's multi-pronged approach to identify and block scam calls and SMSes. The iOS and Android versions were launched in November 2020 and September 2022 respectively. As of October 2022, about 6.5 million SMSes had been flagged to users as potential scams and about 12,900 unique scam-tainted phone numbers have been blacklisted and blocked by ScamShield.
Telecommunication companies have started implementing additional anti-scam filters for their networks. These filters scan for patterns and malicious URL hyperlinks to identify and block scam SMSes.
Nonetheless, ScamShield remains useful. It is an additional layer of defence. ScamShield also provides additional protection by blocking calls from blacklisted numbers. In addition, ScamShield has a reporting function to allow users to alert the authorities about the scam messages and calls they receive.
The National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) and Open Government Products are studying ways to enhance ScamShield. One area they are studying is to make it easier for users to report potential scams.
The Police work closely with stakeholders to encourage the download of ScamShield. For example, the Police regularly share crime information, including scam prevention advice, with Residents' Committees and grassroots volunteers, so that in turn, they can engage their residents about scams via their own outreach platforms. Senior citizens are encouraged to download ScamShield during these sessions. Volunteer Crime Prevention Ambassadors from the NCPC also share about ScamShield with residents, including senior citizens, during their engagements. Additionally, the Police have been pushing out publicity on the ScamShield application at various platforms, such as MRT stations and bus stops.
The Singapore SMS Sender ID Registry (SSIR) was introduced in March 2022 to further strengthen our defences against scam SMSes. The SSIR works with SMS aggregators to block messages attempting to spoof the Sender IDs of organisations which have registered with the SSIR.
From 31 January 2023, the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) will transition from a voluntary to mandatory SSIR regime. All organisations which wish to use Sender IDs will be required to register their IDs with the SSIR. This transition will take place over six months, after which, all unregistered SMS Sender IDs will be blocked.
Businesses are encouraged to register their Sender IDs with the SSIR as soon as possible. To ensure that registration with the SSIR remains affordable for smaller organisations, IMDA has adjusted registration fees, from $1,000 for one bundle of up to 10 Sender IDs, to $200 for each Sender ID. This will reduce costs for smaller businesses, which typically use only one or two Sender IDs. More details are available at https://sgnic.sg/smsregistry/overview.