It was prudent and necessary for the police and SBS Transit to react the way they did after an unattended bag was found at Hougang MRT station on Sunday afternoon, security experts said.

A 39-year-old Chinese national caused a security scare after he left a bag on the platform while running an errand. The bag was later found to contain household items.

The experts said the incident happened during a period of heightened threat of terrorism in the region.

Associate Professor Kumar Ramakrishna, head of Policy Studies and coordinator of the National Security Studies Programme at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), said: “Trains and train stations… are ‘target-rich environments’ for terrorists to inflict maximum casualties.

“It was prudent to close the station to ensure no civilians would have been injured in a worst case scenario of a bomb going off.”

He cited past terrorist attacks mounted on transport networks, such as in Mumbai in 2008 and London in 2005.

In Sunday’s incident, the station on the North-East Line (NEL) was shut for about 20 minutes, after emergency forces were activated.

The man was arrested for public nuisance, with investigations still continuing.

Professor Rohan Gunaratna, who heads the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research at RSIS, said the authorities did not over-react.

He said it was essential to err on the side of caution, given the emergence of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in the region.

“The Government will not take any risks and it will not relax its security after this incident,” he added, although he noted that responses to such incidents should be calibrated.

Criminal lawyer Amolat Singh called for laws relating to such incidents to be sharpened to reflect the security climate.

“Currently, there is no such notice that you cannot leave your items unattended. It is arguable that this guy simply did not think it was wrong. Pinning him with an offence or punishments requires more clarity,” he said.

Experts agreed the actions taken were in line with the national SGSecure efforts with possible security threats at key infrastructure here.

Launched last September, the SGSecure movement aims to mobilise people to be more aware of security, respond to a terror attack and stay united after it.

RSIS Associate Research Fellow Abdul Basit said: “At the end of the day, no matter how prepared the forces are, commuters have to be alert as extra eyes on the ground.”

In response to media queries, SBS Transit, which runs the NEL, said its current security measures at its MRT stations and bus interchanges include deploying transit security officers and installing surveillance cameras.

“We also continue to review our security measures to ensure these are relevant in a dynamic security climate,” said Mr Patrick Nathan, SBS’ vice-president for corporate information and communications.

Transport operator SMRT said it works closely with the authorities, including participating in regular emergency preparedness exercises to practise response protocols.

nghuiwen@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on April 4, 2017.
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People who use or trade personal information obtained illegally can now be charged with an offence even if they did not perform the hacking to retrieve the data, after changes to cyber security laws were passed yesterday.

In amending the Computer Misuse and Cybersecurity Act, the Government is moving to keep pace with the evolving nature of cybercrime and criminal acts that target computer systems.

Besides criminalising the use of personal information obtained through illicit means, the changes also make buying or selling hacking tools for illegal activity a crime.

The revisions extend the Act’s reach to offences committed abroad and to an overseas computer that lead to “serious harm” in Singapore.

In addition, prosecutors can now combine repeated instances of hacking into one computer for a period of 12 months or less into a single charge, which will allow a higher penalty to be imposed.

The changes “will allow the police to handle the increasing scale and complexity of cybercrime, as well as the evolving tactics of cyber criminals,” said Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs Desmond Lee in Parliament yesterday.

They come ahead of a new Cybersecurity Act that should be introduced in the middle of this year.

It will require operators of critical information infrastructure to take proactive steps to secure their systems and networks.

SUPPORT

Ten MPs spoke in support of the Bill, pointing to recent breaches as grounds for tighter cyber security measures.

The Ministry of Defence (Mindef) said on Feb 28 that hackers had stolen the NRIC numbers, telephone numbers and birth dates of 854 personnel through a breach of its I-Net system.

Giving an update of the incident in Parliament yesterday, Second Minister for Defence Ong Ye Kung said the cyber breach was “consistent with a covert attack, with means used to mask the perpetrator’s actions and intent”.

Mindef had also said it ruled out casual hackers, criminal gangs and an inside job, leading experts to believe that foreign governments could be behind the attack.

Investigations are ongoing, but “findings will be kept confidential for security reasons”, Mr Ong added.

Mr Ong said Mindef’s information technology systems are “no different” from others, and like them, experience “hundreds of thousands” of cyber intrusion attempts, ranging from simple probes to cyber espionage efforts.

The minister revealed that the breach occurred “weeks before detection”, as he cited how the time taken before a breach is detected in other IT systems tends to be longer.

Referring to industry reports, Mr Ong said it takes an average of about 150 days, or five months, before a breach is discovered.

He said the I-Net system contains no classified information, and that networks that contain sensitive military information are physically separated from the Internet and protected with encryption and access controls.

Mr Ong said Mindef and the SAF will develop better assessment tools, data analytics and content scanning engines to fend off cyber attacks.

Several MPs raised concerns about the implementation of the new cybercrimes Bill.

Mr Murali Pillai (Bukit Batok SMC) and Nominated MP Mahdev Mohan sought to clarify when having access to personal information might be an offence.

WORK

For instance, journalists or researchers may obtain such compromised data in their line of work.

There is “nothing wrong” with reporting or researching on hacked data, provided that information is not published or made publicly available, said Mr Lee.

However, he noted that depending on the circumstances, “indiscriminately making available hacked personal information may amount to an offence”.

lesterh@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on April 4, 2017.
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SINGAPORE – Just days after Grab launched dynamic pricing for taxis and taxi-like services, ComfortDelGro Corp announced that it will roll out a flat fare option on its cab-hailing app.

Singapore largest taxi operator said it will offer the option from April 10 for taxi bookings made through its app.

The option will be made available alongside the traditional metered fare – and commuters will be able to choose the one that best suits them.

The flat fare option takes into account the distance to be travelled and computes a fare based on existing surcharges. Once a flat fare is chosen, there will be no additional surcharges unless the passenger changes the destination point or makes unplanned stops along the way.

A $5 charge for every additional enroute stop and a $5 charge for a change to a further destination (for every 5km additional travelled) are applicable. Electronic Road Pricing charges will also be applicable.

But travel delays arising from traffic jams will not result in a higher fare – unlike the metered fare option.

ComfortDelGro said its drivers will be encouraged to take on flat fare bookings through a waiver of the call levy.

The company said it was still exploring dynamic pricing, which allows for fares to fluctuate with demand.

This article was first published on April 3, 2016.
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SINGAPORE – Offenders who commit sexual crimes on minors could face harsher penalties in future, with a review on these laws underway.

Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam told Parliament on Monday (April 3): “My own personal view is this there is certainly reasonable basis for taking the view that the punishments have to be stiffer.

“How that needs to be arrived at, that you necessarily have to legislate, or you have to relook some of the processes, policies,” he said.

He was responding MP Tin Pei Ling (Macpherson) who asked whether the Government would review laws to boost punishments for such crimes on minors.

The review comes after mixed martial arts instructor Joshua Robinson was last month sentenced to four years’ jail for consensual sex with two underage girls and showing an obscene clip to a six-year-old girl, among other offences.

His sentence had been perceived by many, including lawyers, to be lenient, and sparked public debate on the issue.

On Monday, Mr Shanmugam told the House that the Government will study whether to add new laws or stiffen penalties for sexual crimes on minors, as part of an ongoing review of the Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code.

Read also: AGC not appealing 4-year jail sentence of MMA instructor in underage sex case

This article was first published on April 3, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.