陈有明医生（裕廊集选区议员）询问内政部长：

（a）政府是否评估过本地用户众多的境外社媒平台在大选期间通过算法操纵特定候选人内容传播的风险？

（b）此类行为是否构成《防止外来干预（对应措施）法》（FICA）界定的外国干预？

（c）现行《防止网络假信息和网络操纵法案》（POFMA）与FICA能否有效应对？

孙雪玲（内政部兼社会及家庭发展部政务部长，代表内政部长）：政府注意到社媒算法可能被操纵以影响用户信息获取。若境外实体（含社媒企业）蓄意通过算法影响本国政治，即构成外国干预行为。

2021年《防止外来干预（对应措施）法》（FICA）可打击算法驱动的外国信息战，特别是旨在影响我国选举的敌对信息。

选举期间若出现损害公共利益的网络虚假信息，政府可援引《防止网络假信息和网络操纵法案》（POFMA）发布指令，要求公布正确事实。此外，在此期间的所有在线竞选广告都必须遵守1954年的《国会选举法》中的相关规则，以确保透明可溯，选举官有权要求社交媒体平台禁止访问或下架违规内容。

政府将在即将举行的大选之前与社交媒体公司接触，提醒它们必须遵守适用的法律，特别是有关外国干涉的法律。

议长：有请陈有明医生。

陈有明医生（裕廊集选区议员）：议长先生，我感谢政务部长的答复。但政务部长难道不认为，您答复中援引的《防止网络假信息和网络操纵法案》（POFMA）等法规，主要侧重于处理虚假信息问题，而非解决算法操控内容可见度及用户接收信息范围这一关键议题吗？

因此，我想请问政务部长。首先，鉴于社媒平台及其算法控制着公民和选民所看到的内容，控制着信息流中显示的内容，那么内政部是否考虑过以下情况。例如，如果一家外国社媒公司故意操纵算法，使某一候选人在竞选期间获得更多报道，该怎么办？候选人甚至可能对此一无所知。

其次，如果一家外国社媒公司决定再次操纵算法，使他们认为会获胜的某位候选人得到更多支持，以便日后可以为此邀功，甚至可能破坏该候选人和团队的民主授权，该怎么办？

这些问题可能会影响国会议员、各党派和各派候选人。

因此，有鉴于此，政务部长能否分享一下新加坡和新加坡人如何才能更好地保护我们自己和我们的民主，使外国社媒公司不会出现操纵算法来影响我们民主进程结果的情况，从而使新加坡的政治仍然由新加坡人来决定？

孙雪玲（内政部兼社会及家庭发展部政务部长，代表内政部长）：我感谢这位议员提出的补充问题。显然，他对这个问题进行了深思熟虑。我想回到我的主要答复。正如我提到的，政府意识到社交媒体平台的算法可能被操纵，从而扭曲信息传播。如果算法被外国个人或实体（包括社交媒体公司）蓄意操纵以影响我国内政，这将构成外国干预。

我刚才分享的这两段内容并不依赖于信息是否为虚假。相反，《防止外来干预（对应措施）法》（FICA）关注的是外国行为者通常通过隐蔽或欺骗手段进行的活动，这些活动旨在影响我国内政，以推进外国行为者自身的利益。

我想分享一个例子。2024年，政府依据FICA对95个社交媒体账号网络发出账户限制令，并屏蔽了10个可能被用于对新加坡发起敌对信息宣传的虚假网站。

除此之外，政府还实施多项举措，帮助新加坡人提高信息素养技能。

议长：有请毕丹星先生。

毕丹星（阿裕尼集选区议员）：议长先生，我想请问，内政部将如何独立判断算法是否因国会提问中所述的原因而被操纵？

孙雪玲（内政部兼社会及家庭发展部政务部长，代表内政部长）：我感谢议员的补充提问。算法本身并不违法。许多社交媒体公司使用算法是为了推送信息。

他们使用算法，首先是因为算法是专有的，其次是为了吸引消费者的注意力。

因此，我想强调的是，社交媒体公司使用算法本身并不违法。但《防止外来干预（对应措施）法》（FICA）的目的是，如果部长确信算法被外国实体用于政治目的，以影响新加坡的国内政治，那么他有权采取预防性措施。

议长：有请陈有明医生。

陈有明医生（裕廊集选区议员）：议长先生，继我和反对党领袖提出的问题之后，我想请问政务部长，内政部是否愿意与从事此类研究的学术界和研究人员合作？或许我可以提请政务部长注意，澳大利亚的学术团队——昆士兰科技大学和蒙纳士大学——最近对另一个国家大选期间主要社交媒体平台的潜在算法偏见进行了计算分析，学术界有机会研究这一问题，内政部是否可以考虑与学术界和专家合作，进一步研究这一问题？

孙雪玲（内政部兼社会及家庭发展部政务部长，代表内政部长）：我感谢议员的建议。确实，政府愿意进行对话和合作，因为这是一个不断变化的威胁环境，我们希望听取学术界和社交媒体公司关于他们所观察到的趋势的意见。

我想举两个已经发生的例子，我们可以从中借鉴。一个是英国广播公司（BBC）的研究，该研究声称，在2024年英国大选期间，关键选区的年轻选民被推荐了虚假和讽刺的人工智能生成视频，这些视频描绘了政党领导人发表他们实际上并未发表的评论。

此外，近年来，也有关于通过社交媒体平台干预选举的指控，最引人注目的是在2024年美国总统大选期间，据称一个由900多个社交媒体账号组成的社交媒体机器人农场在美国和国外传播虚假信息。

因此，我认为现实世界中确实存在这样的例子，我的部门将对这些合作持开放态度，以进一步了解可以采取的其他措施。

Dr Tan Wu Meng asked the Minister for Home Affairs (a) whether the Government has assessed the potential impact of a foreign-based social media platform with significant local presence manipulating its algorithms with the effect of privileging or disadvantaging the social media reach of a particular candidate or group of candidates during a general election period or the run-up period thereof; (b) whether this constitutes foreign interference under existing laws; and (c) whether existing laws such as the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act 2019 and Foreign Interference (Countermeasures) Act 2021 are adequate to address this.

The Minister of State for Home Affairs (Ms Sun Xueling) (for the Minister for Home Affairs): The Government is aware that social media platforms' algorithms may potentially be manipulated to skew the consumption of information by its user.

If algorithms are deliberately manipulated by foreign persons or entities, including social media companies, to affect our domestic politics, that would constitute foreign interference.

Various provisions under the Foreign Interference Countermeasures Act 2021 (FICA) may be used to act against algorithmically driven online foreign interference, particularly hostile information campaigns driven by foreign actors to influence our elections.

If falsehoods against the public interest are communicated online during an election period, the Government may issue directions under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act 2019 (POFMA), requiring the correct facts to be published. Additionally, all online election advertising during that period must abide by the relevant rules in the Parliamentary Elections Act 1954, for transparency and accountability. The Returning Officer can direct social media platforms to disable access to or remove any online election advertising that violates these rules.

 The Government will engage social media companies ahead of the upcoming General Elections to remind them of the need to comply with applicable laws, especially those concerning foreign interference.

Mr Speaker: Dr Tan.

Dr Tan Wu Meng (Jurong): Mr Speaker, I thank the Minister of State for her answer. Does the Minister of State not agree that much of the substance of her answer and reference to the legislation look at issues of falsehoods, rather than manipulation of viewership and what people get to see?

So, can I ask the Minister of State, firstly, given that social media platforms and their algorithms control what citizens and voters see, what shows up in the feed, has the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) considered the following scenarios. For example, what if a foreign social media company deliberately manipulates the algorithm so that a particular candidate gets more coverage during a campaign? The candidate may not even be aware of this. 

Secondly, what if a foreign social media company decides to again manipulate the algorithm so that a particular candidate which they think is going to win is supported even further, so that at a later date, they can claim credit for it and perhaps even undermine the democratic mandate of that candidate and the team?

These problems can affect Members of Parliament (MPs), parties and candidates on all sides, of all persuasions.

So, given this, can the Minister of State share how Singapore and Singaporeans can better protect ourselves and our democracy, so that foreign social media companies do not have a situation where they manipulate algorithms to affect the outcome of our democratic process, so that politics in Singapore remains for Singaporeans to decide?

Ms Sun Xueling: I thank the Member for his supplementary questions. He has obviously given the matter much thought. I would like to come back to my main response, where I mentioned that the Government is aware that social media platforms' algorithms may potentially be manipulated to skew the consumption of information and that if algorithms are deliberately manipulated by foreign persons or entities, including social media companies, to affect our domestic politics, that will constitute foreign interference.

These two paragraphs that I have just shared do not rely on the information being falsehoods. What instead FICA is interested in is that there are activities conducted by foreign actors typically through covert or deceptive means that affect our domestic politics, in order to advance the foreign actors' own interests.

I would like to share an example. In 2024, the Government had issued FICA account restriction directions against a network of 95 social media accounts and also blocked 10 inauthentic websites that could potentially be used to mount hostile information campaigns against Singapore.

Beyond this, the Government also has in place several initiatives to help Singaporeans improve their information literacy skills.

We will continue to study the evolving online landscape and review if additional regulations for social media services are needed as part of ongoing efforts to enhance online safety in Singapore and strengthen our defences against foreign interference.

Mr Speaker: Mr Pritam Singh.

Mr Pritam Singh (Aljunied): Can I ask, Mr Speaker, how will the Ministry independently ascertain whether algorithms have been manipulated for the reasons that are put in the Parliamentary Question?

Ms Sun Xueling: I thank the Member his supplementary question. In and of itself, algorithms are not illegal. Many social media companies have algorithms for the purposes of pushing out their information.

They may use it because, first and foremost, the algorithms are proprietary and they use the algorithms because they want to be able to catch the eyeballs of consumers.

So, I would just like to make this point that algorithms, in and of itself, used by social media companies are not illegal. But what the FICA aims to do is that if the Minister is satisfied that the algorithms are being used by foreign entities, with a political end in mind, to influence domestic politics in Singapore, then he is empowered to issue pre-emptive measures.

Mr Speaker: Dr Tan Wu Meng.

Dr Tan Wu Meng: Mr Speaker, following on from the questions raised by both myself and the Leader of the Opposition, can I ask the Minister of State, would MHA be open to engaging with academia and researchers who conduct research into such matters? Can I perhaps draw the Minister of State's attention to how there is open source research by an Australian academic team – one at Queensland University of Technology, another at Monash University – which did a computational analysis of potential algorithmic bias on a major social media platform during a major election in another country, around the world, that happened quite recently, and that there are opportunities for academia to look at this, and can the Ministry, perhaps, look at examining collaborations with academia and experts, to study this further?

Ms Sun Xueling: I thank the Member for his suggestion. Indeed, the Government is open to conversations and engagements, because this is an evolving threat landscape and we would desire to hear from academics, as well as social media companies, as to the trends they are seeing.

I would like to cite two examples that have happened and which we can also take reference from, which is that there was British Broadcasting Corporation study, which claimed that young voters in key electoral constituencies during the 2024 United Kingdom elections have been recommended false and satirical artificial intelligence generated videos depicting party leaders making comments that they actually did not make.

And also, in recent years, there have also been allegations of foreign interference in elections through social media platforms, most notably during the 2024 United States (US) elections, where it was alleged that a social media bot farm, comprising over 900 social media accounts, had spread disinformation in the US and abroad.

So, indeed, I think there are examples in the real world and my Ministry will be open to these engagements to understand further as to what other steps can be taken.