A common method employed by scammers is to masquerade their SMS sent to Singapore mobile users using the same alphanumeric sender identification (“Sender ID“) used by genuine businesses and organisations, so as to deceive victims into divulging sensitive information. To combat this, in March 2022, IMDA established the Singapore SMS Sender ID Registry (“SSIR“), which is a central body for the registration of Sender IDs to be used in Singapore. SMS that attempts to spoof the registered Sender IDs will be blocked upfront, thus reducing the risk of scams.
While the SSIR was previously a voluntary system, from 31 January 2023 all organisations that send SMS using alphanumeric Sender IDs are required to register with the SSIR. This follows a public consultation on the proposed full SSIR regime issued in August 2022. The implementation of this full SMS sender ID registration requirement is to better protect consumers against non-registered SMS that may be scams.
The key features of the full SSIR regime are as follows:
- Transition measure;
- Application;
- Registration;
- Selection of SMS Aggregators; and
- Assignment priority.
All organisations that use alphanumeric Sender IDs are advised to register early with the SSIR.
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