Be aware of scammers impersonating as IMDA officers and report any suspicious calls to the police. Please note that IMDA officers will never call you nor request for your personal information. For scam-related advice, please call the Anti-Scam helpline at 1800-722-6688 or go to www.scamalert.sg.

Proposals to Strengthen Safeguards for SMS Messages to Singapore Users: 1) Full SMS Sender ID Registry Regime; and 2) Implementation of Anti-Scam Filter within Mobile Networks

Issued Date: 15/08/2022

Decision Date: 14/10/2022

14 October 2022

IMDA has completed its review and issues its decisions.

IMDA’s Decisions
Decision on Full SSIR Regime (254.84KB)
Decision on Implementation of Anti-Scam Filter Solution within Mobile Networks (206.57KB)

Related resources:

Press Release - Full SMS Sender ID Registration to be required by January 2023 (494.06KB)

Media Factsheet - Full SSIR Regime (172.28KB)

At the close of the public consultations, IMDA received the following submissions from the industry and interested parties.

Submissions for Full SMS Sender ID Registry Regime
Alibaba Cloud (Singapore) Pte Ltd
Angsana Solutions Pte Ltd (491.69KB)
Asia Internet Coalition (129.58KB)
EC WEB Pte Ltd (215.83KB)
Hello Technology Pte Ltd (76.66KB)
Inspire-Tech Pte Ltd (126.87KB)
M1 Limited (211.85KB)
NetLynx Communications Pte Ltd (114.70KB) 
Annex (252.51KB)
SendQuick Pte Ltd/TalariaX Pte Ltd (80.24KB)
Sinch Singapore Pte Ltd (433.48KB)
Singtel Mobile Singapore Pte Ltd
StarHub Mobile Pte Ltd (283.18KB)
Twilio Singapore Pte Ltd (1.00MB)
Whispir Pte Ltd (110.45KB)
Woodgrove Dental Surgery Pte Ltd (126.24KB)
Ppy Fong (76.46KB)
Yap Kai Yeow (56.79KB)

 

Submissions for Implementation of Anti-Scam Filter Solution within Mobile Networks
Alibaba Cloud (Singapore) Pte Ltd (191.03KB)
M1 Limited (152.05KB)
Singtel Mobile Singapore Pte Ltd (33.07KB)
StarHub Mobile Pte Ltd (293.87KB)
Ppy Fong (74.84KB)
Yap Kai Yeow (53.38KB)

6 September 2022

In view of requests from the industry for more time to submit their views and comments, the IMDA has extended the submission deadline for the two consultations to 12 noon, 14 September 2022.

15 August 2022

IMDA has been working with the Singapore Police Force, Government agencies, and Private Sector partners as part of the multi-pronged fight against scams. There is a need to build multiple layers of defence and IMDA is proposing new measures to further safeguard SMS as a communications channel.

Full SMS Sender ID Registry Regime

With the surge in scams using SMS, IMDA set up the Singapore SMS Sender ID Registry (“SSIR”) in March 2022. SMS that spoofed registered Sender IDs on the SSIR, are blocked upfront. The SSIR currently remains a voluntary system, i.e., for organisations who choose to register and protect their Sender IDs. The public however may still be subject to spoofed SMS, using non-registered Sender IDs (e.g., from organisations that choose not to register, or IDs that do not belong to any organisation). To build stronger scam prevention capabilities, IMDA is proposing to make Sender ID registration a requirement for organisations that use Sender IDs (“Full SSIR Regime”). IMDA would like to seek views and comments from members of the public and the industry on the proposed Full SSIR Regime.

Exploring Anti-Scam SMS Filtering Solution

IMDA is also working with Mobile Network Operators to explore the deployment of anti-scam SMS filtering solutions within their networks. Technology has now made it possible to identify and filter potential scam messages within the mobile network using machine reading technology. IMDA would like to seek views and comments from members of the public and the industry on the proposed implementation of anti-scam filter solution by the Mobile Network Operators.

IMDA Consultation Paper
Consultation Paper on Full SSIR Regime (250.52KB)
Consultation Paper on Implementation of Anti-Scam Filter Solution within Mobile Networks (182.59KB)

Relates resources:

Media Release - Enhancing protection against IMDA proposes full SMS Sender ID registration as part of ongoing measures

Submissions to the respective consultations must reach IMDA by 12 noon on 14 September 2022. Softcopy of submissions in both Microsoft Word and Adobe PDF format should be provided. Parties submitting comments should include their personal/company particulars as well as the correspondence address, contact number and email addresses on the cover page of their submission. All comments should be addressed to:

Aileen Chia (Ms)
Director-General (Telecoms & Post)
Deputy Chief Executive (Connectivity Development & Regulation)
Infocomm Media Development Authority 
10 Pasir Panjang Road
#03-01 Mapletree Business City
Singapore 117438

Submission for each consultation proposal should be sent separately. Please submit soft copies, with the subject header “Public Consultation on Full SSIR Regime” or “Public Consultation on the Implementation of Anti-Scam Filter Solution”, where applicable, via email to: Consultation@imda.gov.sg

LAST UPDATED: 17 AUG 2023