Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs has issued a directive to Meta, the parent company of Facebook, to take stronger measures against impersonation scams on its platform.
The government has given Meta until September 30, 2025, to comply, or face fines of up to S$1 million. According to the ministry, Meta needs to do more to prevent scams impersonating government officials.
The directive requires Meta to deploy enhanced measures to detect and prevent scams. This includes using facial recognition technology to identify and remove scam advertisements, accounts, profiles, and business pages that impersonate key government officials. The company must also prioritize reviews of end user reports from Singapore to reduce scam content.
Between June 2024 and June 2025, authorities disrupted around 2,000 scam ads and accounts impersonating government offices. The government is concerned about the prevalence of such scams and wants Meta to take more effective action. As one official noted, “We expect online service providers to take more effective action to stop scams and fraudulent content.”
Meta has existing efforts to address scams globally, including in Singapore. However, the government believes more needs to be done. If Meta fails to comply without reasonable excuse, it may face fines of up to S$1 million, with an additional S$100,000 for every day or part of a day during which the offense continues after conviction.
This directive marks the first enforcement action under Singapore’s new Online Criminal Harms Act, which came into effect in February 2024. The government is also considering imposing similar requirements on other online platforms. The move is part of Singapore’s efforts to combat scams and protect citizens from online harm.
The outcome of Meta’s compliance remains to be seen. As the deadline approaches, it will be crucial to see how the company responds to the government’s demands. The Singapore government is determined to tackle online scams and will take action against non-compliant platforms.
