Singapore prepared to invoke foreign interference and fake news laws during upcoming general election

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As Singapore braces for a general election that must be held by November 2025, with Parliament required to dissolve by 23 August, the Government is making clear its intent to use legal powers to counter any manipulation of social media platforms.

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Minister of State for Home Affairs Sun Xueling told Parliament on 5 February 2025 that Singapore’s laws against foreign interference and online falsehoods are ready to be enforced.

Ms Sun said that algorithms on social media, which determine the content users are shown, could be manipulated by foreign individuals or entities to influence Singapore’s political landscape.

If foreign manipulation is detected, measures under the Foreign Interference (Countermeasures) Act (FICA) will be deployed. “If foreign actors, including social media companies, manipulate algorithms to interfere in our politics, this will constitute foreign interference, and the Government will act,” she said.

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The Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (POFMA) will also be used if false or misleading content harmful to public interest circulates online during the election period.

Under POFMA, the Government can issue directives requiring social media platforms to post corrections or remove false information.

Ms Sun further noted that all online election advertising must comply with existing regulations, with the Returning Officer authorised to order the removal of ads that breach election rules.

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Her statements were in response to questions from Dr Tan Wu Meng, an MP for Jurong GRC, who raised concerns about foreign-based social media platforms favouring or disadvantaging candidates by manipulating algorithms.

Dr Tan asked whether existing laws like FICA and POFMA are sufficient to address these risks, given the complexity of detecting hidden manipulation.

In October 2024, Singapore introduced additional safeguards by passing a law banning deepfakes and other digitally altered content of candidates during election periods.

The move reflected a broader concern about how emerging technologies, such as AI-generated content, could disrupt elections. But even with the strengthened legal framework, questions remain about how authorities will identify covert manipulation before it influences voter sentiment.

Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh (Aljunied GRC) pressed Ms Sun on how the Government intends to independently verify whether algorithms have been tampered with by foreign actors.

Ms Sun acknowledged the challenge, explaining that algorithms are not illegal by nature. However, she maintained that FICA would be triggered if foreign entities were found using them for political interference. She did not, however, provide specific details on how the Government would detect such interference in practice.

Instead, she said that if the Minister for Home Affairs is “satisfied” that social media algorithms are being misused to influence Singapore’s elections, the Government will act pre-emptively.

But her vague response to Singh’s question left room for speculation about what criteria would satisfy the Government and whether the detection mechanisms are robust enough to catch interference before damage is done.

To minimise risks, Ms Sun said the Government will engage social media platforms ahead of the general election, reminding them of their legal obligations under Singaporean law.

She also highlighted plans to collaborate with academics and social media companies to monitor digital threats. Citing studies from the United Kingdom, she pointed out that manipulated social media content had been shown to influence voters in past elections.

Despite these preparations, her statements did little to address scepticism over whether the Government’s response will be impartial.

Opposition figures have long raised concerns about how laws like POFMA are applied, pointing to instances where directives have disproportionately targeted opposition politicians and critics. The possibility that regulatory powers could be weaponised during the election period remains a sensitive issue.



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