Singapore has issued a directive under the Online Criminal Harms Act (OCHA), giving Meta until 30 September to curb Facebook impersonation scams targeting key government office holders.

The directive was issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs through the Singapore Police Force’s OCHA Competent Authority.

The implementation directive requires Meta to introduce enhanced facial recognition measures in Singapore and prioritise review of end-user reports from the country.

Authorities said scammers have increasingly used Facebook between June 2024 and June 2025 to create fake advertisements, accounts, profiles and business pages using videos or images of key government office holders.

The Singapore Police Force disrupted about 2,000 such attempts during this period but remains concerned about the platform’s role in these scams.

Failure to comply without reasonable excuse could result in a fine of up to S$1 million after conviction, with an additional penalty of up to S$100,000 per day for continuing offences.

The authorities said they will also work with Meta to support other influential public figures in Singapore through its global impersonation protection measures and are considering similar requirements for other online platforms.

The OCHA allows the competent authority to require online service providers to put in place systems or measures to address serious online offences.

Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by Freepik