SingaporeParliamentary Elections Act 1954, Ban on Manipulated Online Election Advertising Containing a Realistic but False Representation of a Candidate
In force since .
An AI sector rules rule binding public and private bodies.
- Obligation class
- Prohibition
- Audit expectation
- none
- Setting the rule reaches
- Elections
As of .
What it requires
- Do not publish, or cause to be published, in Singapore during the election period of an election online election advertising that contains a realistic audio, visual or audiovisual representation of a candidate saying or doing something the candidate did not in fact say or do, where the representation was created wholly or partly with content generated or manipulated using digital means, including generative artificial intelligence.
- This prohibition does not reach a private or domestic communication between individuals by electronic means, a publication of election news by an authorised news agency, or other circumstances the election advertising regulations prescribe.
These lines are LexLint's reading of the law's text, as of .
If you get it wrong
Criminal exposureYes
Criminal exposure note
A fine not exceeding $1,000, or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or both, on conviction by a District Court (s. 61MA(2)).
What it makes you log
Logging duty
Section 61MA states the offence, its penalty, a defence and the exclusions; none creates a duty to keep, create or produce a log or record.
- Kind
- None
- As of
What this law does
Section 61MA of the Parliamentary Elections Act 1954, inserted by the Elections (Integrity of Online Advertising) (Amendment) Act 2024 (Act 34 of 2024), makes it an offence to publish, or cause to be published, in Singapore during the election period of an election in an electoral division online election advertising that contains an audio, visual or audiovisual representation of a candidate saying or doing something that the candidate did not in fact say or do.
The representation must be realistic enough that some members of the general public would reasonably believe the candidate said or did that thing, and must have been created wholly or partly with content generated or manipulated using digital means. The section's illustration states that generative artificial intelligence is an example of such digital means.
The publisher must know, or ought reasonably to have known, that the content is or includes online election advertising that relates to the election. A person guilty of the offence is liable on conviction by a District Court to a fine not exceeding $1,000, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or to both.
It is a defence for the person charged to prove, on a balance of probabilities, that the person did not know and had no reason to believe that the candidate did not in fact say or do the thing. The section does not apply to a private or domestic communication of content between two or more individuals by electronic means, to a publication of election news by an authorised news agency, or in other circumstances that the election advertising regulations prescribe. The section came into operation on .
When LexLint raises it
When your app profile says your app generates audio with AI, generates images with AI or generates video with AI.