Personal Profile in Singpass (PQ Reply by Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean)

Family and Education Section of Personal Profile in Singpass

Fourteenth Parliament of Singapore – First Session for the Sitting on 10 January 2022

Question

Ms Joan Pereira asked the Prime Minister with regard to one’s personal profile in Singpass, what are the reasons for (i) the inclusion of only children but not spouses or parents under the Family section, as details of spouses or parents can also be used to prove family relationships in emergencies and (ii) reflecting only the details of GCE “O” and “A” level results under the Education section but not the highest level of formal education achievement.

Answer

Written answer by Mr Teo Chee Hean, Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security (for the Prime Minister)

The Singpass profile allows users to view their personal information and provides a trusted digital identity for secure transactions. We will add data to the user profile if there is demand for such data fields, where such data has accurate and complete digitalised records, and where there are fewer concerns over data privacy.

We have not yet included details of spouses or parents, given the potential sensitivities. When displaying the personal information of another adult, it is typical for consent to be sought. Automatic inclusion of such information presumes consent, even if relations are estranged. There could also be changes in personal details (e.g. name change) that individuals prefer to keep private. Such considerations would have to be addressed first.

As for digital education records, more will be included in the Singpass profile as they become available. At the time of the current implementation, the National General Certificate of Education Ordinary “O”, Normal “N” and Advanced “A” levels records have been digitalised. We are looking into how the records from our local polytechnics and universities can also be progressively digitalised.