Committee of Supply 2022 debate, Day 3: Josephine Teo on building a vibrant and secure digital future

Consumers will be able to resolve complaints with their telcos or media service providers more quickly from April, under a new Alternative Dispute Resolution Scheme. It will be mandatory for the service providers to participate in the resolution process. Communications and Information Minister Josephine Teo, who announced this in Parliament on Friday (Mar 4), said this will be a "helpful channel" which is designed to be affordable and effective. Outlining her ministry's key priorities and initiatives, she stressed the importance of enhancing regulations in the digital domain to strengthen digital security and resilience, and engage every Singaporean in the digital era to preserve and enhance social cohesion. One key area is child safety. Platforms must have robust systems to minimise exposure to harmful content, as well as "user reporting" to close the awareness gap and promote prompt follow-up action. They must provide information on what they are doing to keep users safe. Mrs Teo said the new codes will have the force of law. The Government will study how the codes can be effectively enforced, including through legislative updates. The Government is also doing more to better protect Singaporeans from illegal activities online. She stressed that the Government will partner all Singaporeans to build a vibrant and secure digital future together.