In a decisive move to combat the nation’s “most prevalent crime type,” Singapore’s parliament approved amendments to the criminal law on Tuesday, which will subject scammers to mandatory caning. The new law, the Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill, stipulates that scammers, those who recruit for scam syndicates, and participants in these syndicates will face a punishment of between six and 24 strokes of the cane. Additionally, mules who facilitate scams will be subject to discretionary caning, with a maximum penalty of 12 strokes. These severe caning penalties are a significant toughening of the existing legal framework and will be applied in addition to other penalties already in place for scam offenses.
The core of the legislation is its ability to distinguish between varying levels of involvement within scam operations, targeting those who provide essential tools for the crimes. Individuals who supply items like SIM cards, Singpass credentials, or payment accounts to scammers will face caning under two conditions: if they intended or knew the tool would be used for scams, or if the tools were utilized in a scam without their knowledge, but they failed to take reasonable steps to prevent the misuse. Senior Minister of State Sim Ann clarified that genuine victims who were themselves deceived into providing a scam tool will not be penalized under these new offenses, as existing laws already ensure their protection.
In her speech, Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs and Foreign Affairs Sim Ann affirmed the government’s commitment to combating scams, stating that “The existing offences do not penalise genuine victims in the first place.” She also noted that the government will maintain close vigilance over the evolving situation and is prepared to further increase penalties if the current measures prove insufficient to curb the rising tide of scam-related crime. This emphasis highlights the seriousness with which Singapore is addressing the societal and financial damage caused by these sophisticated criminal operations.
Separate from the scam-related measures, the amendments introduce a recalibration of caning for other offenses across the penal code. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) will either entirely remove caning for certain crimes or change mandatory caning to discretionary caning, leaving the imposition of the punishment up to the courts. Currently, 96 offenses carry discretionary caning, and 65 have mandatory caning. Ms. Sim stressed that despite these changes, “more serious cases should still result in caning,” ensuring that the punishment remains an option for severe offenses even as the law becomes more flexible in other areas.
Beyond the changes to caning and scam penalties, the amendments introduce other significant legal enhancements. They bring in stiffer penalties for the large-scale circulation of sexual images or videos, bolster legal protection for minors and other vulnerable victims, and officially criminalize the doxxing of public servants. Doxxing is defined in the legislation as the public circulation of a person’s private details without their consent. These comprehensive changes reflect a broader effort by the Singaporean government to update its criminal law and ensure it effectively addresses both traditional and contemporary criminal challenges.
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