Levels of Proficiency of Seniors who Have Gone Through Seniors Go Digital Programme

7 Mr Desmond Choo asked the Minister for Communications and Information (a) to date, how many seniors have been engaged through the Seniors Go Digital Programme; and (b) whether the Ministry has plans to enhance or put in place more programmes to specifically target online scams against seniors.

8 Mr Liang Eng Hwa asked the Minister for Communications and Information (a) whether those who participated in the Seniors Go Digital Programme are now more proficient in using digital devices in their daily lives, such as to access Singpass, online booking of polyclinic appointments and checking of account balances; and (b) beyond numbers, whether the focus of the Programme can be to improve digital usage by seniors going forward.

The Minister for Communications and Information (Mrs Josephine Teo): Mr Speaker, may I have your permission to take Question Nos 7 and 8 together, please?

Mr Speaker: Please do.

Mrs Josephine Teo: Thank you. The Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) understands that going digital can be a daunting experience. This is one reason we established the SG Digital Office (SDO) in June 2020, to better support people who need help, such as seniors, hawkers and heartland merchants, with basic digital tools and skills. Under the Seniors Go Digital (SGD) programme, SDO's Digital Ambassadors (DAs) have engaged and trained over 190,000 seniors to date.

The programme focuses on training and enabling seniors to use digital tools for their daily lives. These include using a smartphone to access Government services like Singpass and health services, and to communicate and transact online. The efforts have produced encouraging results. In a 2021 survey with seniors conducted one month after their engagement with the SDO, about nine in 10 seniors said they continued to apply the digital skills they learnt in their daily lives.

Targeted programmes have also been implemented to strengthen seniors' ability to manage cyber threats. For instance, the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA) has a SG Cyber Safe Seniors Programme that raises awareness and drives adoption of cyber hygiene practices amongst seniors, and has engaged more than 45,000 seniors since its launch. The programmes I mentioned are regularly reviewed and updated to ensure their relevance. With online scams being a growing threat, a range of topics and tips for seniors to guard against online scams have been included.

The Singapore Police Force (SPF) and National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC) have also rolled out broad-based and targeted public education efforts. These include the annual anti-scam public education campaign, "Spot the Signs. Stop the Crimes.", which builds awareness and vigilance amongst the general public on the tell-tale signs of scams. NCPC's Volunteer Crime Prevention Ambassadors also engage residents, including seniors, to share crime prevention tips.

Complementing the Government's programmes, the Digital for Life (DfL) movement was launched in 2021 to galvanise the support of people, private and public (3P) sectors on ground-up initiatives to help Singaporeans gain confidence in going digital. For example, at the Majestic Smart Seniors Applied Centre, managed by RSVP Singapore, seniors learn to identify and avoid scams, and protect their digital identity through curated modules and webinars conducted in partnership with Google.

The Government continuously reviews its anti-scam programmes and efforts to ensure they are updated and relevant. We will also continue to work with the community and industry to engage seniors, to help them stay safe and secure online.

Mr Speaker: Mr Desmond Choo.

Mr Desmond Choo (Tampines): I thank the Minister for her reply. I have two supplementary questions. The Minister has mentioned that there are 190,000 seniors that were trained. This is quite an achievement since it started, because over the first year, it was only 100,000. Are there any specific targets that the Ministry has set for us to train as many seniors as we can? The second question is, there are three tiers of digital competency for the seniors, with scams being one of the largest threats to seniors, especially now that they are coming on board. Is there a need to enhance tier three of the competency, or to introduce a new tier of competency so that seniors are always protected as they come on board the digital training?

Mrs Josephine Teo: Mr Speaker, we hope to avoid the tiers because it is very painful. But to your question, is there a target number? I would say the more the better. I think we are also very cognisant of the fact that seniors tend to take a longer time to become familiar with the digital domain and they would want to gain confidence a step at a time. So, we would not want to rush the seniors.

We also do not want the seniors to feel that the only way they can have a meaningful life is to engage digitally. There are other things that are meaningful, but adding the digital dimension can help them to keep in touch with their friends through new means; to plug into opportunities for recreation, for understanding the world and to engage with society in a way that they could not have done so before. But it is important to note that we should let them take it at their own pace.

Right now, we have organised some of the programmes according to tiers. Individuals can decide. I should also add that, in fact, once they gain confidence in going digital, some of the seniors are very savvy. They are so good that they can teach their friends how to become more effective. And then the question becomes: how are they able to learn new knowledge to teach their friends? In fact, through online resources, they are already able to become even more competent. So, that would be the approach that we take.

It is also not just the programmes that matter. I think there are many touch points that seniors can come into contact with, and we do not want to assume that it is only the Government who can provide programmes that will work and be effective. Crowding in the partners is equally important, because it is also a question of building trust with the seniors, so that they are receptive to what is being shared with them.

Mr Speaker: Mr Liang Eng Hwa.

Mr Liang Eng Hwa (Bukit Panjang): Thank you, Sir. Sir, I appreciate the extensive community outreach effort by the SG digital office, helping the seniors to be familiarised with the digital tools, and also the scam preventions. I would like to ask the Minister, in going forward, should the focus be more on practical applications, for example, the apps and functions that can help the seniors in their daily life. For example, how to use Singpass, calling a cab, ordering food, TeleConsult and so on.

And if I may come back to my Parliamentary Question, on the polyclinic appointment bookings. With COVID-19 cases still high, the polyclinics are obviously very busy with high numbers of visits. Many of the seniors were told to book online and there are only limited walk-ins that you can book, but they are feeling helpless about how they can make a booking through the online platforms and how to go through the whole process – including using a Singpass, Singnet profiles and so on. Can I ask the Minister, if the digital office could also look at how to assist seniors to help them in some of these functions for their daily lives?

Mrs Josephine Teo: Mr Speaker, I thank Mr Liang for his questions. If I could, perhaps, take a bit of time to just share with the Member and other colleagues an overview of the Seniors Go Digital programme curriculum. It is broken up into several modules. The first module is on connectivity and communication. And the applications are, for example, on smartphone features like how to use Wireless@SG, how to use WhatsApp, how to use Zoom. Then, there is another module specifically on access to Government Digital Services, TraceTogether, Singpass mobile. And yet another module on entertainment, MeLISTEN, MeWATCH and using NLB's Libby app.

So, there is quite a range of things. In particular, there are several other features that would be of particular use to our seniors. For example, in the health module, the seniors are guided on how to use HealthHub and how to use Healthy 365. So, it is quite structured. But again, it all depends on the seniors' comfort level and what they find to be useful.

I should just add that, inherent in Mr Liang's question is also a tension. There is a tension in wanting to help the seniors become more familiar with a range of digital applications and so nudging them in that direction to use digital services, as a motivation for them to learn about the tools and how to go digital. And on the other hand, recognising that some of these seniors will find this a very difficult task and they might actually feel very anxious. So, between the two, we have to find the right balance and try to move things forward.

Our overall approach is to make the options available and to still make the non-digital avenues open. They may not be as convenient as the digital avenues, but it does not mean that seniors do not have the non-digital options available to them. The CDC vouchers is a very good example. Many seniors over time have learnt and gained confidence on how to use the digital vouchers, but there remains a group that far prefers to use the physical vouchers and those options still remain visible.

In summary, we will continue to nudge forward, and we will continue to offer options for seniors who feel more confident and want to move to the next level of their digital engagement. But we will also want to be very mindful that some seniors are still not yet comfortable, and we want to offer them that sense of confidence that they are not being pushed in a direction that they do not wish to go.