Singapore Threatens Meta With Fines Over Facebook Impersonation Scams
The Singapore government announced on Thursday that Meta Platforms has until the end of this month to roll out new measures — including facial recognition — to fight impersonation scams on Facebook.
If Meta fails to comply, it could face fines of up to S$1 million (about $776,639), according to a statement from the Ministry of Home Affairs. The ministry added that continued non-compliance after the deadline could lead to additional penalties of S$100,000 for each day.
The directive was officially issued to Meta on Wednesday. The company has not yet responded to requests for comment.
Previous Orders and Rising Scam Cases
Earlier this month, Singapore’s police directed Meta to implement stronger anti-scam protections against ads, accounts, profiles, and business pages impersonating senior government officials. However, that order did not include a specific deadline.
Authorities noted a sharp increase in scams between June 2024 and June 2025, with fraudsters using videos and images of government officials in fake ads and accounts on Facebook.
Government Concerns Under New Online Harms Law
The Ministry of Home Affairs acknowledged that Meta has introduced anti-impersonation safeguards globally, including in Singapore. Still, it stressed that scam activity remains a serious concern.
This is the first order issued under Singapore’s new Online Criminal Harms Act, which took effect in February 2024.
($1 = 1.2876 Singapore dollars)
