SMU Academy Graduate Certificate in Law & Technology PDF

SMU Classification: Restricted SMU Academy Graduate Certificate in Law & Technology Module 8: Crimes of the Digital Economy Day 1 S M U A C A D Bryan Leow E M1 Y / ac...

SMU Classification: Restricted SMU Academy Graduate Certificate in Law & Technology Module 8: Crimes of the Digital Economy Day 1 S M U A C A D Bryan Leow E M1 Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted 1 Introduction / Housekeeping Rules S M U A C A D 2 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted 1 General Introduction to Digital Crimes S M U A C A D 3 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted S M U A C A D 4 E M Y Video attributed: Josephine Teo (Instagram) / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Areas that will be covered Singapore’s approach to tackling Digital Crimes General introduction to Digital Crimes Crimes involving Computers & Computer-enabled Crimes Digital Evidence / Importance of Computer Forensics Investigating and taking enforcement action against digital crimes committed overseas Recovering assets moved out of Singapore Class Assessment (Hypotheticals) S M U A C A D 5 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted What is a Digital Crime In Singapore, the term “Digital Crimes” refers to two categories of offences: Crimes involving computers - Offences where a computer system is a target of a criminal act Computer-enabled crimes - Offences where “traditional” crimes are committed via means of a computer system S M U A C A D 6 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Singapore’s approach to tackling Digital Crimes The National Cybercrime Action Plan (*) Launched in 2016 (contra the updated Cybersecurity Plan 2021) Four key principles Prevention is key Agile responses are needed to combat the evolving threat of cybercrime Criminal justice system must be robust and supported by effective laws Combating cybercrime is a shared responsibility S M U A C A D 7 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Singapore’s approach to tackling Digital Crimes Four key priorities Educating and empowering the public to stay safe in the digital realm Enhancing the Government’s capacity and capability to combat digital crime Strengthening legislation and the criminal justice framework Stepping up partnerships and international engagement S M U A C A D 8 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Singapore’s approach to tackling Digital Crimes Anti-Scam Command Scam Strike Teams (within Anti-Scam Investigation Scam Public Education Anti-Scam Centre the Police Land Divisions) Branches Office S M U A C A D 9 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Singapore’s approach to tackling Digital Crimes The Singapore Police Force Anti-Scam Centre Engagement: Partnership with major banks, telcos and industry players (Money Lock features) Proactive intervention with potential scam victims Engineering Using technology to track and consolidate island wide scams to visual and sense- make voluminous data Education I can ACT against Scams campaign Project A.S.T.R.O S M U A C A D 10 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted 1 Crimes involving a Computer S M U A C A D 11 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted The Computer Misuse Act 1993 (“CMA”) The CMA is the primary legislation that deals with Computer Crimes The CMA criminalises activities such as Unauthorised access to computer material (s 3 CMA) Accessing a computer to commit an offence (s 4 CMA) Unauthorised modification of computer material (s 5 CMA) Unauthorised use or interception of computer service (s 6 CMA) Unauthorised obstruction of use of computer (s 7 CMA) S M U A C A D 12 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Unauthorised access to computer material s 3(1) of the CMA makes it an offence for – any person who knowingly causes a computer to perform any function for the purposes of securing access without authority to any program or data held in any computer S M U A C A D 13 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Unauthorised access to computer material Relevant Punishment Provisions 1st offence Fine not exceeding $5,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years, or to both: s 3(1) CMA 2nd or subsequent offence Fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or to both: s 3(1) CMA If damage is caused as a result of the offence Fine not exceeding $50,000 or to imprisonment not exceeding 7 years or to both: s 3(2) CMA S M U A C A D 14 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of unauthorised access Using the victim’s credit card on an electronic payment system and to process an unauthorised transaction: Public Prosecutor v Tay Bee Lang and anor SGDC 4 Using the victim’s login credentials without authorisation to access a computer system: Public Prosecutor v Cheng Jun SGDC 106 Using a system which you normally have access to, for an unauthorised purpose: Public Prosecutor v Woon Wei Ke Joshua SGDC 117 Click here for a more recent example concerning rogue employees and here concerning public service officers S M U A C A D 15 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Class Activity Phishing is the method employed to trick victims into providing sensitive information such as passwords and credit card details. Phishing often takes the form of fake websites/e-mail accounts intended to pass off as the authentic websites/e-mail account in order for the perpetrator to steal sensitive information such as passwords. Can you name a recent phishing scam? S M U A C A D 16 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Class Activity Discussion – would phishing be an example of unauthorised access? S M U A C A D 17 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Access with the intention to commit an offence s 4(1) of the CMA makes it an offence for – any person who causes a computer to perform any function for the purpose of securing access to any program or data held in any computer with intent to commit an offence A person who is guilty of this offence may be punished with a fine not exceeding $50,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or to both Note: s 4 only applies to offences involving property, fraud, dishonesty, or which cause bodily harm, and which is punishable on conviction with imprisonment of not less than 2 years S M U A C A D 18 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of access with intention to commit an offence Using a counterfeit credit card to make a fraudulent purchase: PP v Chong Shih Wai and another SGDC 268 (*) Using cloned Automated Teller Machine cards to steal money from a bank: Public Prosecutor v Law Aik Meng 2 SLR(R) 814 Identity Theft S M U A C A D 19 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Unauthorised modification of computer material ` s 5(1) of the CMA makes it an offence for – any person who does any act which he knows will cause an unauthorised modification of the contents of any computer S M U A C A D 20 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Unauthorised modification of computer material Relevant Punishment Provisions 1st offence Fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years, or to both: s 5(1) CMA 2nd or subsequent offence Fine not exceeding $20,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or to both: s 5(1) CMA If damage is caused as a result of the offence Fine not exceeding $50,000 or to imprisonment not exceeding 7 years or to both: s 5(2) CMA S M U A C A D 21 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of unauthorised modification of computer material Infecting an IT system with malware, such as ransomware, spyware, worms, trojans and viruses Ransomware is a form of malware that denies a victim’s access to the device or data until a ransom amount is paid A Trojan is a type of malware that is often disguised as legitimate software. Once activated, Trojans can enable cyber-criminals to spy on you, steal your sensitive data, and gain backdoor access to your system Using the victim’s credit card details to purchase items online: Public Prosecutor v Tan Hock Keong Benjamin SGDC 16 Website defacements: Public Prosecutor v James Raj s/o Arokiasamy SGDC 36 (“the Messiah”) (*) S M U A C A D 22 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Unauthorised use or interception of computer service s 6(1) of the CMA makes it an offence for any person who knowingly – (a) secures access without authority to any computer for the purpose of obtaining, directly or indirectly, any computer service; (b) intercepts or causes to be intercepted without authority, directly or indirectly, any function of a computer by means of an electro-magnetic, acoustic, mechanical or other device; or (c) uses or causes to be used, directly or indirectly, the computer or any other device for the purpose of committing an offence under paragraph (a) or (b) S M U A C A D 23 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Unauthorised use or interception of computer service Relevant Punishment Provisions 1st offence Fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years, or to both: s 5(1) CMA 2nd or subsequent offence Fine not exceeding $20,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or to both: s 5(1) CMA If damage is caused as a result of the offence Fine not exceeding $50,000 or to imprisonment not exceeding 7 years or to both: s 5(2) CMA S M U A C A D 24 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of unauthorised use or interception of computer service Using a computer port to gain access to a computer system, e.g. a messaging platform: Nuzaihan Modifying the content of a computer file without the authority of the system administrator: Public Prosecutor v Muhammad Nuzaihan bin Kamal Luddin 3 SLR(R) 653. S M U A C A D 25 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Unauthorised obstruction of use of computer s 7(1) of the CMA makes it an offence for – any person who knowingly and without authority or lawful excuse – (a) interferes, with or interrupts or obstructs the lawful use of, a computer; or (b) impedes, or prevents access to, or impairs the usefulness or effectiveness of, any program or data stored in a computer S M U A C A D 26 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Unauthorised obstruction of use of computer Relevant Punishment Provisions 1st offence Fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years, or to both: s 7(1) CMA 2nd or subsequent offence Fine not exceeding $20,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or to both: s 7(1) CMA If damage is caused as a result of the offence Fine not exceeding $50,000 or to imprisonment not exceeding 7 years or to both: s 7(2) CMA S M U A C A D 27 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of obstruction of use of computer Denial-of-Service attacks “DoS” DoS is an attack targeted at depriving legitimate users from online services. It is done by flooding the network or server with useless and invalid authentication requests which eventually brings the whole network down, resulting in no connectivity. As a result of this, users are prevented from using a service. S M U A C A D 28 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Class Activity Watch this video and think about what possible offences may have been committed Read more about their modus operandi here S M U A C A D 29 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Class Activity (cont’d) WormGPT, read about it here S M U A C A D 30 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Other relevant provisions under the CMA Unauthorised disclosure of access code: s 8 CMA Supplying personal information obtained by an act done in contravention of ss 3, 4, 5, or 6 of the CMA: s 9 CMA Obtaining or retaining items to use or which are used to commit or facilitate the commission of offences under ss 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 of the CMA: s 10 CMA. Enhanced punishment for offences involving protected computers: s 11 CMA. S M U A C A D 31 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted New CMA amendments (s8A) S8A – Unauthorised disclosure of access code (to prevent the abuse of Singpass) S M U A C A D 32 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted New CMA amendments (s8A) But note what Prosecution does not need to prove S M U A C A D 33 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted New CMA amendments (s8A) And note the presumptions that shift the burden to the accused S M U A C A D 34 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted New CMA amendments (s8A) And the savings provision S M U A C A D 35 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted New CMA amendments (s8B) S8B – Unauthorised retention / supply of access code (to prevent the abuse of Singpass) S M U A C A D 36 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted New CMA amendments (s8B) S8B – Unauthorised retention / supply of access code (to prevent the abuse of Singpass) S M U A C A D 37 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted New CMA amendments (s8B) S8B – Scope of application (when is it not an offence) S M U A C A D 38 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg / SMU Classification: Restricted S M U A C A D 39 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Extraterritorial scope of the CMA s 11 CMA – enhanced punishment for offences involving protected computers s 12 CMA – abetments and attempts s 13 CMA - CMA shall apply to any person whatever his nationality or citizenship, outside as well as within Singapore if: ✔ The accused was in S’pore at the material time: s 13(3)(a) CMA ✔ The computer, program or data was in Singapore at the material time (for offences under ss 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8): s 13(3)(b) CMA ✔ The offence causes, or creates a significant risk of serious harm in Singapore: s 13(3)(c) read with s 13(4) CMA. S M U A C A D 40 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Recap of CMA The CMA is the primary legislation that deals with Computer Crimes, which criminalises activities like Hacking (s 3 CMA) Identity theft / fraud (s 4 CMA) Infecting IT systems with malware (s 5 CMA) DoS attacks (s 7 CMA) In certain situations, an individual who committed an act which is an offence under the CMA, may still be prosecuted, even if he was not in Singapore at the material time of the offence. S M U A C A D 41 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted 1 Types of Computer Enabled Crimes (Part I) S M U A C A D 42 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted What does the Penal Code consider as “property”? s 2 of the Penal Code In this Code — 1871 (see Criminal Law Reform Act 2019) “immovable property” means land, benefits to arise out of land and things attached to the earth or permanently fastened to anything attached to the earth; “movable property” includes property of every description, except immovable property; “property” means money and all other property, movable or immovable, including things in action, other intangible or incorporeal property and virtual currency; “virtual currency” means a digital representation of value in money or money’s worth that can be digitally traded and functions as a medium of exchange, a unit of account or store of value, regardless of whether it is legal tender in any country or territory including Singapore. S M U A C A D 43 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Extraterritorial reach of the Penal Code S M U A C A D 44 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Which offences? S M U A C A D 45 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted The offence of Cheating s 415 of the Penal Code Whoever, by deceiving any person, whether or not such deception was the sole or main inducement, fraudulently or dishonestly induces the person so deceived to deliver or cause the delivery of any property to any person, or to consent that any person shall retain any property, or intentionally induces the person so deceived to do or omit to do anything which he would not do or omit to do if he were not so deceived, and which act or omission causes or is likely to cause damage or harm to any person in body, mind, reputation or property, is said to “cheat”. s 420 of the Penal Code Whoever cheats and thereby dishonestly induces the person deceived to deliver or cause the delivery of any property to any person, or to make, alter or destroy the whole or any part of a valuable security, or anything which is signed or sealed, and which is capable of being converted into a valuable security, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years, and shall also be liable to fine. S M U A C A D 46 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted The issue of AI, deep fakes etc Committing the deceptions, e.g. deep fake videos pretending to be your colleagues, see here cloning your voice to bypass authentication, see here fixing broken English in scam emails: see here New ways of phishing data S M U A C A D 47 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg / SMU Classification: Restricted S M U A C A D 48 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted The offence of Fraud s 424 of the Penal Code s 420 of the Penal Code S M U A C A D 49 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Rationale for the fraud amendments “Offences can be committed across national borders, with the constituent elements of offences committed in different countries. Indeed, many white-collar offences have multiple physical elements which can take place in different countries. It is currently not clear whether Singapore courts will have jurisdiction when some elements take place in Singapore, and others outside of Singapore. A new Schedule will be inserted into the Penal Code. Singapore Courts will have jurisdiction over offences in this Schedule, where any relevant act of the offence occurs in Singapore. The Bill introduces the new offence of fraud. To understand the need for fraud offences, we need to look at the current offence of cheating. The offence relies on there being a victim that relied on the deception by the offender. The deception had to induce the victim to do something. The new offence of Fraud is intended to deal with novel and complex scheme which the current offence of cheating may not cover. It focuses on the deceitful intent of the offender and not the effect on the alleged victim. Trivial lies 2nd Reading of the Criminal Law Reform Bill by The will not be caught. The cheating offence will continue to be used where the elements of the offence are satisfied. Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Two variants of fraud will be introduced. The first, fraud directly in connection with written or oral contracts for Home Affairs (Mr Amrin Amin) (for the Minister for goods and services, and the second, other types of fraud. The second category of other types of fraud will come Home Affairs) into force first, with the rest of the Penal Code amendments. For fraud in connection with contracts for goods and services, we are working on the development of a mechanism, which allows private persons to obtain recourse for S M U more common cases involving smaller losses.” A C A D 50 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Theft now also covers virtual theft S 378 of the Penal Code Whoever, intending to take dishonestly any movable property out of the possession of any person without that person’s consent, moves that property in order to such taking, is said to commit theft. Explanation 1.—A thing so long as it is attached to the earth, not being movable property, is not the subject of theft; but it becomes capable of being the subject of theft as soon as it is severed from the earth. … Explanation 6.—A person may move property which is intangible or incorporeal by transferring the property from one account to another account or transferring the interests in the property from one person to another person or by extinguishing the property. Illustration (q) – A gains access to Z’s bank account and dishonestly transfers money from Z’s account to A’s own account without Z’s knowledge or consent. A commits theft. S M U A C A D 51 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted One relevant CDSA provision s 51 of the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act 1992 makes it an offence for a person (“A”) who: 1) Enters or is otherwise concerned in an arrangement where A knows or has reasonable grounds to believe that; a) The arrangement would facilitate the retention or control by or on behalf of some other person (“B”) of B’s benefits from criminal conduct (whether by concealment, removal from jurisdiction, transfer to nominees etc); or b) That B’s benefits from criminal conduct are i) used to secure funds that are placed at B’s disposal or ii) used for B’s benefit to acquire property by way of investment 2) And, A knows or has reasonable grounds to believe that B engages or has engaged in criminal conduct or has benefit from criminal conduct. S M U A C A D 52 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted New CDSA amendment for criminal conduct (s 54(3A)) S M U A C A D 53 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Class Activity Compare and contrast the first CDSA provision and the new amendments How do they vary? Knows / Reason to believe vs Rashly / Negligence – What do you think is the difference S M U A C A D 54 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of online cheating scams Job Scams E-commerce Scam Fake friend Scam S M U A C A D 55 E M Y Pictures attributed: Scamalert.sg / academy.smu.edu.sg / SMU Classification: Restricted S M U A C A D 56 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg / SMU Classification: Restricted S M U A C A D 57 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg / SMU Classification: Restricted S M U A C A D 58 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg / SMU Classification: Restricted S M U A C A D 59 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg / SMU Classification: Restricted S M U A C A D 60 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Fake Friend Scams This is an example of physical phishing, where the scammer deceives the victim into being that they are known to the victim, and thereafter relies on the victim’s belief that the scammer is a known relationship to scam the victim. 1. Making Contact The scammer calls the victim and addresses by name, pretending to be a long-lost friend, who changed their number. They would ask the victim to save the new number in their contacts 2. The Deception After building up rapport, the scammer would then ask the victim for financial help, usually because of a loan or some other fake reason. The victims would be persuaded to transfer the money themselves, which the scammers used S M U to transfer money to bank accounts that the scammers 61 controlled. A C A D E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Fake Friend Scams Statistics No of Reported Change from 2022 Cases in 2023 6,859 225.7% increase Total amount cheated in Change from Profile of victims 2023 2022 $23.1 million +$13.3 37.5% of victims million were aged between 50 to 64 S M U A C A D 62 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted E-commerce Scams 1. Advertising An item is listed by the scammer online for a price that is a “great deal” or “too good to be true” The items are usually popular electronic products or in great demand (e.g. concert / amusement park tickets) The victim would then contact the scammer 2. The Deception The scammer then inform the victim that he requires payment before delivery of the item. This could be full payment or a significant deposit The seller then promises to deliver the item but fails to deliver. In some cases, the seller may demand further payments for duties or delivery charges after the first payment is made. In other cases, the seller may deliver a product that is not equivalent to what was advertised, e.g. a fake phone. In such cases, that may also amount to an offence under the Penal Code S M U A C A D 63 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg / SMU Classification: Restricted S M U A C A D 64 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted E-commerce Scams Statistics No of Reported Change from Cases in 2023 2022 9783 Increase of 105.4% Total amount cheated in Change from Profile of victims 2023 2022 $13.9 million -$7.4 49.3% of victims million were aged between S M U 30 and 49. A C A D 65 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Job Scams There are several variations of this scam but the most common type of job scam involves easy cash: 1. The Job Advertisement Scammers place online job ads for “easy cash” and “work from home jobs” as well as for participants for a system trial on popular classified websites like Gumtree or even on Carousell. Applicants may also be asked to reveal personal details like their names, IC numbers, phone numbers, phone security codes and one-time passwords (OTP) as part of the job application process. 2. The “Job” The scammer would inform the applicants that their job requires them to do the following in return for a small commission: Processing fund transfers by receiving money into their personal bank accounts and then transferring the money out through online banking or money transfer services Open bank accounts using their names for a business, or Receive a donation into their personal bank accounts and assist to deposit the money into a crypto kiosk. S M U A C A D 66 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Job Scams Statistics No of Reported Change from 2022 Cases in 2023 9914 Increase of 52.7% Total amount cheated in Increase from Profile of victims 2023 2022 $135.7 million +$18.3 45.4% of victims were million aged between 30 and 49. S M U A C A D 67 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg / SMU Classification: Restricted S M U A C A D 68 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Recap of Online Cheating Scams Type of Scam Relevant Act of Deception Relevant Act of Delivery of Property under s 420 PC under s 420 PC Fake Friend Scam Pretending to be your long lost best friend When the Victim transfers money at the scammer’s directions E-commerce Scam Pretending that there is an item for sale, When the Victim transfers money to purchase when in fact there is no item (i.e. the item is the item not given to the buyer) Job Scam Pretending to be hiring the victim for a job Depending on the scam, the Victim might be (which can vary in type) asked to transfer money in order to commence employment S M U A C A D 69 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Other Relevant Penal Code provisions s 416A PC provides that it is an offence to deal with illegally obtained information: Where the offender knows / has reason to believe that the information was obtained without the other person’s consent The offender may not obtain/retain the information or supply/transmit/make the information available. s 420A PC provides that it is an offence to obtain services dishonestly or fraudulently: E.g. if A uses the Grab app to order a car service and intends not to make payment for the car service. S M U A C A D 70 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted A comment on the upstream ecosystem of scams Human trafficking is a real concern, especially in the South-east Asia region The scams are increasingly committed by individuals who themselves fell prey to other scams, and are either deceived or kidnapped into committing the scams S M U A C A D 71 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted 1 Types of Computer Enabled Crimes (Part II) S M U A C A D 72 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted The Protection from Harassment Act The Protection from Harassment Act (“POHA”) was enacted in 2014, and protects people from being the targets of harassment or stalking, whether in real life or online In 2019, further amendments were introduced to protect victims, including making “doxxing” an offence PFHA provides for both criminal and civil remedies against harassment, and civil remedies for false statement of facts S M U A C A D 73 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Intentionally causing harassment, alarm or distress s 3(1) of the POHA provides that an individual or entity must not, with intent to cause harassment, alarm or distress to another person: a) use any threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour; b) make any threatening, abusive or insulting communication; or c) publish any identity information of the person or related persons and as a result cause the target person or any other person, harassment, alarm or distress S M U A C A D 74 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Intentionally causing harassment, alarm or distress Relevant Punishment Provisions 1st offence Fine not exceeding $5,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months, or to both: s 3(2) POHA 2nd or subsequent offence Fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both: s 8(1)(a) POHA Enhanced punishment Only applicable if the enhanced penalty under s 8 POHA does not apply. where The Court may sentence the offender to punishment not exceeding twice the (a) victim is a vulnerable maximum punishment that can be imposed if at the time of the offence, the person offender knew / ought reasonably to have known that the victim was / is in an intimate relationship with the offender: s 8B(2) POHA. (b) Victim is in an intimate relationship with the The Court may have regard to all circumstances of the case to determine if offender the offender and the victim were in an intimate relationship. S M U A C A D 75 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of intentionally causing harassment, alarm or distress Cyberbullying Defined as “Any behaviour performed through electronic or digital media by individuals or groups that communicate hostile or aggressive messages intended to inflict harm or discomfort over time against a victim” Posting on social media abusive and insulting remarks about the victim’s alleged sexual promiscuity as well as contact details: See illustration (c) of s 3 POHA S M U A C A D 76 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Harassment, alarm or distress s 4(1) of the POHA provides that an individual or entity must not, : a) use any threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour; or b) make any threatening, abusive or insulting communication which is heard, seen or otherwise perceived by any person likely to caused harassment, alarm or distress S M U A C A D 77 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Intentionally causing harassment, alarm or distress Relevant Punishment Provisions 1st offence Fine not exceeding $5,000: s 4(2) POHA 2nd or subsequent offence Fine not exceeding $10,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both: s 8(1)(b) POHA Enhanced punishment Only applicable if the enhanced penalty under s 8 POHA does not apply. where The Court may sentence the offender to punishment not exceeding twice the (a) victim is a vulnerable maximum punishment that can be imposed if at the time of the offence, the person offender knew / ought reasonably to have known that the victim was / is in an intimate relationship with the offender: s 8B(2) POHA. (b) Victim is in an intimate relationship with the The Court may have regard to all circumstances of the case to determine if offender the offender and the victim were in an intimate relationship. S M U A C A D 78 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of harassment, alarm or distress Posting a vulgar tirade against a classmate on a website accessible to the classmates of both the offender and the victim: Illustration (a) of s 4 POHA Class Discussion: Would Zoom bombing amount to an offence under s 3 or 4 PFHA? S M U A C A D 79 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Fear, provocation or facilitation of violence s 5(1) of the POHA provides that an individual or entity must not by any means, use towards another person any threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour: a) with the intent to cause / knowing or having reasonable cause to believe it is likely to cause the victim to believe that unlawful violence will be used against the victim or any other person; or b) with the intent to cause / knowing or having reasonable cause to believe it is likely to facilitate the use of unlawful violence against the victim or any other person. S M U A C A D 80 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of fear, provocation or facilitation of violence Posting the victim’s identity on a website site accessible to both the offender’s and victim’s classmates, and encouraging the classmates to beat the victim up: Illustration (a) to s 5 POHA S M U A C A D 81 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Doxxing The act of “doxxing” involves the publishing of an individual’s (or related persons) personal information such as their photos, contact numbers or employment details with the intention to harass, threaten or facilitate violence against them. POHA makes it an offence to commit “doxxing” in three situations: Publishing personal information with the intention to cause harassment, alarm or distress: s 3(1)(c) POHA Publishing personal information to cause fear of violence: s 5(1A)(a)(i) POHA Publishing personal information to facilitate use of violence: s 5(1A)(b)(i) S M U POHA 82 A C A D E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Differences between the types of Doxxing Offences s3 s 5(1A) “causing fear of violence” S 5(1A) “facilitate violence” limb limb Must the act The publisher must have It is possible to establish an Similar to s 5(1A) “causing fear of be intended to cause offence if there is an intention to violence limb” intentional? harassment, alarm or cause fear of violence: distress s5(1A)(a)(i), An offence may still be disclosed if the publisher knows, or ought to have known that his actions will likely cause fear: s5(1A)(b)(i) Who must the Either the person whose Only the person whose personal Either the person whose personal act be personal information was information has been published. It information was published, or directed at published, or “any other would be necessary to show that “any other person” person” he believes that violence will be used against him (or any other person for the offence to be made out S M U A C A D 83 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of Doxxing S M U A C A D 84 Attributed: Minlaw Press E M Y Release April 2019 / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Unlawful Stalking Unlawful stalking is an offence under the POHA: s 7(1) POHA Unlawful stalking occurs when a person or entity engages in conduct that: Involves acts or omissions associated with stalking; Causes harassment, alarm or distress; and Was intended or was known to be likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress. In determining whether there is a course of conduct, the court will have to be satisfied that there was a certain degree of persistence or continuity of purpose which was unreasonable in the particular circumstance: Lee Shing Chan v PP 4 SLR 1174 (*) S M U A C A D 85 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Examples of unlawful stalking Following someone Communicating or attempting to communicate with someone Loitering in areas near someone’s home or business Giving or leaving someone gifts despite being asked to stop doing so Keeping someone under surveillance Repeated circulation of revealing photographs of a classmate to other classmates S M U A C A D 86 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Stalking or (not) Stalking S M U A C A D 87 Credits: Wong Fu Productions E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Extraterritorial scope of the POHA Whether Court has jurisdiction to try an offence Offences Location of Victim Location of Accused during Jurisdiction to hear and impose relates to commission of offence sentence (Y/N) ss 3, 4, 5,6 Outside of Singapore In Singapore Yes: see s 17(2) PFHA s3 In Singapore or Accused knew / Outside of Singapore Yes: see s 17(3) PFHA had reason to believe victim would be in Singapore ss 4, 5, 6 In Singapore or Accused knew / Outside of Singapore Yes: see s 17(4) PFHA had reason to believe victim would be Singapore s7 Outside of Singapore In Singapore Yes: see s 17(5) PFHA s7 In Singapore or Accused knew / Outside of Singapore Yes: see s 17(6) PFHA had reason to believe victim would be Singapore S M U A C A D 88 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Example of Extraterritorial application of POHA Recently, a teenager pleaded guilty to two charges under the POHA for using threatening words, after he threatened to kill an English Premier League (“EPL”) football player and his family members (“the victims”). The teenager had sent the threatening messages via Instagram, using anonymous accounts. The victims were in Britain at the time the threats were made, but had felt distressed. Read it here for more details S M U A C A D 89 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Recap of POHA The POHA criminalises activities like Causing harassment, alarm or distress (s 3 or s 4 POHA) Causing fear or provocation of violence (s 5 POHA) Stalking (s 7 POHA) Doxxing (s 3 or s 5 POHA) An individual who committed an act which is an offence under the POHA, may still be prosecuted if: The victim was in Singapore but the individual was not; or The individual was in Singapore but the victim was not. S M U A C A D 90 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted Class Activity Discussion - Would it be beneficial to have a statutory definition of “digital crimes” in Singapore? S M U A C A D 91 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /  SMU Classification: Restricted End of the Day! Thank you for your time S M U A C A D 92 E M Y / academy.smu.edu.sg /