Verifying Identities of Public Service Officers Given Removal of Contact Information from Online Singapore Government Directory

Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis asked the Minister for Digital Development and Information with the removal of contact details for public officers from the Singapore Government Directory (SGDI), how can the public (i) corroborate the identity of an officer if they are in doubt of communication, including by contacting the officer directly if necessary and (ii) access the contact information of an officer for relevant and legitimate business.

The Senior Minister of State for Digital Development and Information (Ms Jasmin Lau) (for the Minister for Digital Development and Information): Mr Speaker, my reply will address the oral question raised by Mr Louis Chua and the written question raised by Mr Dennis Tan in today's Order Paper, as they relate to the streamlining of contact details on the Singapore Government Directory (SGDI).

The SGDI was streamlined on 1 July 2026 to reduce the risk of scammers misusing Government officers' names and contact details to carry out impersonation scams.

SGDI serves as a public directory of Government officers and agency contact information. Members of the public who wish to confirm that a public officer is attempting to reach them should contact the relevant Government agency directly through its official channels, such as the agency's website or the Quality Service Manager (QSM). To facilitate this, QSM contact details have been made more prominent on SGDI, providing clearer avenues for the public to reach Government agencies for enquiries and feedback. For follow-ups on existing issues, members of the public may also use the contact details provided in earlier official correspondence with the agency.

The Government will continue to strengthen safeguards against impersonation scams, while ensuring that Government agencies remain accessible to members of the public. We are developing measures to help the public identify legitimate phone calls from the Government. Later this year, we will introduce a common phone number prefix for calls from Government agencies, followed by a recognisable caller name displayed on recipients' phones.

Mr Speaker: Mr Chua.

Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis (Sengkang): Thank you, Speaker. I thank the Senior Minister of State for the response. Just two quick supplementary questions.

First, in terms of the impersonation scams that we have seen so far, is there a sense of what proportion are impersonating the senior management teams of the respective Ministries and political office holders, versus the so-called more rank and file or middle management? I think if I recall correctly, there is a scam advisory by the Police earlier this year. I think there were some impersonations of Ministers and the like.

The second question is, in terms of the response times or service standards for the QSMs, I would imagine that there will be a much higher volume of request now. So, has the Ministry monitored or taken a look at how the response times have been since July?

Ms Jasmin Lau: I thank the Member for his question. I do not have on hand the differences in numbers between impersonation of political office holders or senior civil servants, compared to those who are more junior. But I would also say that protecting the public from such scams require the combined efforts across Government, so this move on SGDI is one of the many moves that we have to reduce the scams.

On response times, agencies will continue to direct the public enquiries that come through their official channels. They are fully expected to maintain their existing service standards, including timely responses and escalation where necessary.