As a two-factor authentication (2FA) option to log into SingPass, Singapore has added face verification and account citizens to access e-government services. They can also opt to send their SMS one-time password (OTP) to the mobile number of another SingPass customer, provided with additional support to help less technologically advanced users access the platform.
As part of the government’s efforts to promote a digitally inclusive community, the two additional 2FA options were launched, said the Singapore Government Technology Agency (GovTech) in a statement Wednesday. The government agency is accountable for the ICT and smart nation rollouts in the region.
Users of SingPass would first log into their account by entering their ID and password, then scanning their face on a webcam-equipped internet-connected computer or a handheld device with a front-facing camera. They will visit selected public locations equipped with the facility, including the IRAS Taxpayer and Business Service Centre and CPFB’s Bishan Service Centre, if they do not have access to either of these systems, with more locations to be added gradually.
The face verification technology was combined with security measures to protect against fraud, such as identifying and preventing the use of images, videos, or masks during the verification process, GovTech said.
Kwok Quek Sin, senior director of National Digital Identity, said that the added alternative would not only be beneficial to assist less technologically advanced users who may not need to key in additional details such as OTPs but may also facilitate Singaporeans living abroad and may not have a locally registered number to access SMS OTPs.
The desire to serve the less technologically savvy better has contributed to the inclusion of “multi-user SMS OTP,” where users of SingPass would connect their account to another user’s mobile number, such as their kid, to receive their OTPs.
At the end of March next year, the two 2FA options’ inclusion follows proposals to discontinue the OneKey token. Some 120,000 users of the 2FA physical system, launched in 2013, are currently transitioning to other alternatives, GovTech said.
There are four million SingPass users here who can access 500 digital services offered by more than 180 government departments and business institutions, such as banks, by taping their accounts.
In October, Singapore’s Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said it had been carrying out iris and facial scanners at all automatic and manual immigration points located at the ground, sea, and air checkpoints of Singapore’s passenger halls since July. This included Terminal 4 of Changi Airport, Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal, and Tuas and Woodlands’ checkpoints bordering neighboring Malaysia in the north.
The programs will use passengers’ iris and facial data as the necessary biometric signatures for immigration clearance, replacing fingerprints.
In September, Singapore agreed with British supplier iProov to provide face authentication technology for use in the country’s national digital identification scheme. The authentication feature was introduced earlier this year as a trial, enabling SingPass users to access biometric e-government services.
The Genuine Presence Assurance technology of iProov is marketed to have the potential to decide if the face of an entity is an actual human and not an image, mask, or digital spoof and to check that it is not a deep or inserted film. Its agreement with Singapore’s government also marked the first time the cloud facial identification technology of the vendor was used to protect the national digital identity of a country.
