PM Lee Hsien Loong warns against online scam using his name to solicit bitcoin investments

SINGAPORE - Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has warned the public not to be cheated by a website using his name to solicit bitcoin investments.

In a Facebook post uploaded on Saturday evening (Sept 22), Mr Lee said: "Anyone can be the target of fake news."

He also referred to a recent similar scam, where two websites were soliciting bitcoin investments using fabricated comments attributed to Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam. The Monetary Authority of Singapore had flagged the two websites.

Mr Lee's post was accompanied by a screenshot of a website with a picture of him and some quotes attributed to him - about how profitable bitcoin investments can be.

Mr Lee cautioned: "Don't believe everything you see on the internet!"

In the same post, Mr Lee talked about a parliamentary Select Committee on fake news, which recently called for new laws that will grant the Government powers to combat the spread of online falsehoods.

The Select Committee on Deliberate Online Falsehoods, which has 10 members, submitted a report to Parliament on Wednesday. It made 22 recommendations in total - including enacting legislation, urging technology companies to take proactive steps to tackle fake content on their platforms and creating a national framework to guide public education on falsehoods.

The Select Committee on Deliberate Online Falsehoods has made 22 recommendations as part of a swathe of countermeasures against fake news.

Mr Lee said that the Government will carefully study the report and its recommendations. He also rallied the public to play a part in fighting fake news.

He said: "Countering fake news is not something the Government can do alone. We need the co-operation of many groups - businesses, tech companies, media organisations, public institutions, and most of all, the public - to be aware and to be responsible."

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.