In force2020 Revised Edition

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Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act 2019 · 2020 Revised Edition · Part 2 · Prohibition of Communication of False Statements of Fact in Singapore

7. Communication of false statements of fact in Singapore

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(1)

A person must not do any act in or outside Singapore in order to communicate in Singapore a statement knowing or having reason to believe that —

(a)

it is a false statement of fact; and

(b)

the communication of the statement in Singapore is likely to —

(i)

be prejudicial to the security of Singapore or any part of Singapore;

(ii)

be prejudicial to public health, public safety, public tranquillity or public finances;

(iii)

be prejudicial to the friendly relations of Singapore with other countries;

(iv)

influence the outcome of an election to the office of President, a general election of Members of Parliament, a by‑election of a Member of Parliament, or a referendum;

(v)

incite feelings of enmity, hatred or ill‑will between different groups of persons; or

(vi)

diminish public confidence in the performance of any duty or function of, or in the exercise of any power by, the Government, an Organ of State, a statutory board, or a part of the Government, an Organ of State or a statutory board.

(2)

Subject to subsection (3), a person who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction —

(a)

in the case of an individual, to a fine not exceeding $50,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or to both; or

(b)

in any other case, to a fine not exceeding $500,000.

(3)

Where an inauthentic online account or a bot is used —

(a)

to communicate in Singapore the statement mentioned in subsection (1); and

(b)

for the purpose of accelerating such communication,the person who is guilty of an offence under that subsection shall be liable on conviction —

(c)

in the case of an individual, to a fine not exceeding $100,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or to both; or

(d)

in any other case, to a fine not exceeding $1 million.

(4)

Subsection (1) does not apply to the doing of any act for the purpose of, or that is incidental to, the provision of —

(a)

an internet intermediary service;

(b)

a telecommunication service;

(c)

a service of giving the public access to the internet; or

(d)

a computing resource service.

Terms defined in s 2

bot
Defined · s 2
“bot” means a computer program made or altered for the purpose of running automated tasks;
Open s 2
computing resource service
Defined · s 2
“computing resource service” means a service that provides the use of any computer hardware or software to enhance the processing capability or storage capacity of a computer;Examples Examples of computing resource services are cloud computing and data centre services.
Open s 2
inauthentic online account
Defined · s 2
“inauthentic online account” means an online account that is controlled by a person other than the person represented (whether by its user profile, unique identifier or other information) as its holder, and the representation is made for the purpose of misleading end‑users in Singapore of any internet intermediary service as to the holder’s identity;
Open s 2
internet intermediary service
Defined · s 2
“internet intermediary service” means —(a)a service that allows end‑users to access materials originating from third parties on or through the internet;(b)a service of transmitting such materials to end‑users on or through the internet; or(c)a service of displaying, to an end‑user who uses the service to make an online search, an index of search results, each of which links that end‑user to content hosted or stored at a location which is separate from the location of the index of search results,but excludes any act done for the purpose of, or that is incidental to, the provision of —(d)a service of giving the public access to the internet; or(e)a computing resource service;Examples Examples of internet intermediary services are — (a) social networking services; (b) search engine services; (c) content aggregation services; (d) internet‑based messaging services; and (e) video‑sharing services.
Open s 2
statement
Defined · s 2
“statement” means any word (including abbreviation and initial), number, image (moving or otherwise), sound, symbol or other representation, or a combination of any of these;
Open s 2
statutory board
Defined · s 2
“statutory board” means a body corporate or unincorporate established by or under any public Act to perform or discharge a public function;
Open s 2
telecommunication service
Defined · s 2
“telecommunication service” has the meaning given by section 2 of the Telecommunications Act 1999.
Open s 2