Singapore police to gain powers to order banks, telcos to share scam data, disable accounts

Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is proposing new legislation to empower police with the ability to order service providers to disclose information and disable accounts linked to scam activities. The proposed Scams (Countermeasures) and Other Matters Bill aims to bolster the city-state's defenses against rapidly evolving scam tactics.

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Scams are evolving rapidly, and Singapore’s laws must keep pace.

The bill seeks to grant police the authority to issue disclosure orders and account disabling orders to financial institutions, telecommunication companies, and other online service providers. This measure is intended to facilitate a more systematic sharing of suspicious activity indicators detected by different providers, thereby enabling more effective disruption of scam operations. Currently, fragmented efforts can allow scams to persist despite individual providers identifying suspicious patterns.

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Together with industry and community partners, the government will continue to take firm, coordinated and proportionate action to protect the public and preserve trust in Singapore’s digital environment.

In addition to enhanced operational powers, the MHA is also proposing significantly higher financial penalties for designated service providers who fail to comply with the Online Criminal Harms Act (OCHA). These fines could reach up to S$10 million (US$7.8 million), reflecting the seriousness with which Singapore is treating the issue of online crime.

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the situation is still "very concerning"

While Singapore saw a 27.6 percent decrease in scam cases in 2025 compared to previous years, the police acknowledge the situation remains "very concerning." Last year alone, over 7,000 individuals suspected of being money mules or involved in scam cases were investigated. The MHA emphasized that the new bill, along with ongoing collaboration with industry and community partners, will strengthen Singapore's capacity to protect the public and maintain trust in its digital environment.

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However, without consistent information-sharing mechanisms, suspicious activity detected by one service provider may not be shared systematically with others. This can result in fragmented efforts to disrupt scams.