Committee of Supply 2025 debate, Day 6: Josephine Teo on supporting victims of online harms and enhancing cybersecurity standards
A new safety commission will be set up in 2026 to support victims of online harms. The Online Safety Commission (OSC) aims to provide victims with timely help. They can ask the OSC to direct online platforms to take down offensive content, including all copies. They can also seek the release of perpetrators’ information for legal proceedings. Digital Development and Information Minister Josephine Teo gave these details in parliament on Friday (Mar 7). She also revealed that about 2,700 infected devices were identified in Singapore last year after the Cyber Security Agency (CSA) took part in an international operation against a global botnet. Mrs Teo said “malicious actors” had exploited “poor cyber hygiene practices” to infect devices such as baby monitors and Internet routers. This could have led to personal information being stolen or the infected devices being used as “a standby army” for malicious activities by foreign state-linked actors, she said. To raise baseline cybersecurity standards nationally and protect more organisations, especially those of higher risk, the CSA is assessing if more measures are needed for vendors that may be given access to sensitive data or systems in government. The government may also take the lead to incorporate cybersecurity considerations in its procurement decisions. Against a “tide” of misinformation online, Mrs Teo said Singapore is studying regulatory moves in other countries to safeguard the “prominence and discoverability” of public service media, in which trust here remains high. She also elaborated on why Singapore is well-placed to benefit from widespread AI adoption and gave an update on efforts to expand the country’s pool of AI practitioners.
A new safety commission will be set up in 2026 to support victims of online harms. The Online Safety Commission (OSC) aims to provide victims with timely help. They can ask the OSC to direct online platforms to take down offensive content, including all copies. They can also seek the release of perpetrators’ information for legal proceedings. Digital Development and Information Minister Josephine Teo gave these details in parliament on Friday (Mar 7). She also revealed that about 2,700 infected devices were identified in Singapore last year after the Cyber Security Agency (CSA) took part in an international operation against a global botnet. Mrs Teo said “malicious actors” had exploited “poor cyber hygiene practices” to infect devices such as baby monitors and Internet routers. This could have led to personal information being stolen or the infected devices being used as “a standby army” for malicious activities by foreign state-linked actors, she said. To raise baseline cybersecurity standards nationally and protect more organisations, especially those of higher risk, the CSA is assessing if more measures are needed for vendors that may be given access to sensitive data or systems in government. The government may also take the lead to incorporate cybersecurity considerations in its procurement decisions. Against a “tide” of misinformation online, Mrs Teo said Singapore is studying regulatory moves in other countries to safeguard the “prominence and discoverability” of public service media, in which trust here remains high. She also elaborated on why Singapore is well-placed to benefit from widespread AI adoption and gave an update on efforts to expand the country’s pool of AI practitioners.
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