Online Criminal Harms Act 2023 · Updated to 15 Sep 2026 · Part 11 · Offences, Penalties and Defences
54. Defences
Official textFrom Singapore Statutes Online, unchanged
It is not a defence to a charge for an offence under section 50, 52 or 53 that —
the person is subject to a duty under any written law, any rule of law, any contract or any rule of professional conduct, that prevents or restricts the person from complying with a requirement of the Part 2 direction, the Part 6 order or the written notice under section 47 or 48, as the case may be; or
the person has applied for a reconsideration of, or has appealed against, the Part 2 direction or the Part 6 order, as the case may be.
It is not a defence to a charge for an offence under section 51 that —
the person is subject to a duty of confidentiality or privacy imposed by any rule of law or a duty imposed by any contract or any rule of professional conduct, that prevents or restricts the person from complying with a requirement of the rectification notice, the implementation directive or the code of practice concerned, as the case may be; or
the person has appealed against the decision to designate the person’s online service, the decision to give a code application notice to the person, a requirement of the implementation directive or a requirement of the code of practice concerned or a variation thereof, as the case may be.
Without limiting the meaning of “reasonable excuse”, it is a defence to a charge for an offence under this Part (except in relation to a stop communication direction) if the accused proves, on a balance of probabilities, that —
stop communication direction
“stop communication direction” means a direction described in section 8;
it was not reasonably practicable to do more than what was in fact done to comply with the Part 2 direction, rectification notice, implementation directive or Part 6 order, as the case may be; or
there was no better practicable means than was in fact used.
Terms defined in s 2
code application notice
Defined · s 2“code application notice” means a notice given under section 22(1);
code of practice
Defined · s 2“code of practice” or “code” means a code of practice issued under section 21(1), and includes a code of practice varied under section 21(2) or 26(7);
implementation directive
Defined · s 2“implementation directive” or “directive” means a directive to implement any system, process or measure made under section 24;
online service
Defined · s 2“online service” means the whole or any part of any service on or through which online activity can be conducted and which can be accessed by means of the internet, and regulations may clarify the types of services that are online services;
Part 2 direction
Defined · s 2“Part 2 direction” means any of the following directions:(a)an access blocking direction;(b)an account restriction direction;(c)an app removal direction;(d)a disabling direction;(e)a stop communication direction;
Part 6 order
Defined · s 2“Part 6 order” means any of the following orders:(a)an access blocking order;(b)an app removal order;(c)a service restriction order;
rectification notice
Defined · s 2“rectification notice” means a notice to rectify any non‑compliance with a code of practice made under section 23;
stop communication direction
Defined · s 2“stop communication direction” means a direction described in section 8;
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Part 12