Written Answer · 2026-05-06 · Parliament 15
Assessment of AI-generated Deepfake Political Videos and Regulatory Intervention Thresholds under POFMA and OCHA
Workers' Party MP Ms Sylvia Lim filed written questions to the Minister for Digital Development and Information: does the Government test on vulnerable groups before deciding that AI-generated deepfake videos of political office-holders are so obviously fabricated that POFMA directions are unnecessary, and what threshold of public confusion must be met before proactive intervention under the Online Criminal Harms Act (OCHA)? Mrs Josephine Teo replied that under POFMA a Minister can issue a Correction Direction against false statements of fact communicated in Singapore where it is in the public interest, including deepfake videos; under OCHA the Government can direct online service providers to block Singapore users' access where there is reasonable suspicion of a First Schedule offence or activity preparatory to scams or malicious cyber activity. She stressed that harmful content is assessed holistically and intervention is not determined by any single factor, and pointed to public education — IMDA's Digital Skills for Life framework and the SG Digital Office's Gen AI workshops for seniors — as being as important as legislation.
Key Points
- • Lim asked if vulnerable groups are tested before deepfakes are deemed obviously fabricated
- • Teo: POFMA enables Correction Directions; OCHA enables access-blocking directions
- • Government assesses harmful content holistically; no single factor determines intervention
- • IMDA's Digital Skills for Life and Gen AI workshops for seniors carry public education
The Government holds that the existing POFMA and OCHA frameworks suffice for deepfake videos, with intervention based on holistic case-by-case assessment rather than a single quantitative threshold, and public education as important as legislation.
Ms Lim questioned whether the Government actually verifies vulnerable groups' ability to discern fabrication when declining to invoke POFMA, and pressed for a clear threshold of public confusion that triggers proactive OCHA intervention.
On deepfake regulation the Government is sticking to case-by-case discretion rather than quantitative thresholds, placing media literacy education on par with legislation and signalling no hard intervention standard in the near term.
"Public education initiatives are therefore as important as legislation to help our people become more vigilant and discerning when they go online."
Participants (2)
Original Text (English)
SPRS Hansard · Fetched: 2026-06-09
32 Ms Sylvia Lim asked the Minister for Digital Development and Information (a) whether the Government does testing on vulnerable groups before determining that AI-generated deepfake videos involving political office-holders are so obviously fabricated that directions under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act 2019 are unnecessary; and (b) what threshold of public confusion arising from such videos must be met before a proactive intervention under the Online Criminal Harms Act 2023.
Mrs Josephine Teo : Under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act, a Minister can issue a Correction Direction if a false statement of fact has been communicated in Singapore, and it is in the public interest to issue the Correction Direction. This includes online falsehoods communicated via deepfake videos.
Under the Online Criminal Harms Act (OCHA), the Government can issue directions to online service providers to disable Singapore users' access to an online content or activity, when there is reasonable suspicion that the online activity is in furtherance of a specified criminal offence under the First Schedule of OCHA, or when there is suspicion or reason to believe that the online activity is preparatory to the commission of a scam or malicious cyber activity. This includes deepfake images and videos.
The Government assesses harmful online content holistically and determines the appropriate response, based on a range of factors for each case and the legal conditions under the relevant legislation. As such, intervention is not determined by any single factor alone.
We recognise that there are segments of society who may be less confident in their ability to discern between fact and falsehood online. Public education initiatives are therefore as important as legislation to help our people become more vigilant and discerning when they go online. For example, the Digital Skills for Life framework, developed by the Infocomm Media Development Authority, equips Singaporeans with skills to identify and respond to false and misleading content. The SG Digital Office also runs Gen AI workshops for seniors, which cover how to stay safe and smart online against AI-generated misinformation.