SM Teo Chee Hean at the Asia Tech x Singapore (ATxSG) Summit Social 2022

Integrated, Open and Secure Tech for a Better Future

H.E. Airlangga Hartarto
Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Indonesia

H.E. Abdul Mutalib Yusof
Minister of Transport and Communications, Brunei

H.E. Fabio Faria
Minister of Communications, Brazil

H.E. Sandiaga Uno
Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Indonesia

H.E. Andres Sutt
Minister of Entrepreneurship and Information Technology, Estonia

H.E. Khairy Jamaluddin
Minister of Health, Malaysia

My colleague Minister Josephine Teo,

Excellencies,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I very much wanted to be with you in person, but due to a late change in my schedule, I am addressing you from Hong Kong.

The disruption from COVID-19 accelerated the adoption of digital technologies, enabling us to stay connected through telecommuting, video-conferencing, e-learning, online shopping, digital payment and on-demand entertainment. This has shaped the “new normal” of the post-COVID world.

Digital technology has now penetrated almost everything we do. It has become increasingly indispensable and critical to the way we organise our societies, conduct business, and live our lives. The benefits and opportunities are tremendous.

At the same time, important new questions are now being raised that did not feature so prominently when digital technology was in its infancy, nor even as it was developing and growing rapidly. However, its omnipresence today raises three sets of questions which we, as global tech leaders and policy shapers, need to grapple with:

i. First, will the digital world become more integrated or divided?
ii. Second, will we achieve the promise of a “flat” digital world with open access for all, or come under the dominance and market power of a few big technology companies?
iii. Third, how can we balance between ever more pervasive and seamless access and the need for stronger security and privacy?

These are not just questions about technological innovation which have been the driving force in the industry. They are important policy considerations and choices, which we need to make in our own societies, and collectively in our interconnected world.

Let me elaborate on each of these.

At the dawn of the internet, cyberspace was portrayed as a new realm untethered from the state. It was posited to be borderless – barriers that exist in the physical world would be eliminated and information would be democratised and made accessible at all times.

Since then, enormously creative individuals and tech companies have indeed expanded the digital space exponentially to every corner of the earth, crossing oceans, deserts and borders. However, each country does have its sovereign concerns. Countries have their own views on system security requirements, data access and control, content standards, foreign interference and subversion, supply chain resilience, as well as the booking of corporate revenues and taxation.

We now have a greater understanding of the manipulative power of data and information. Consumers and countries are now asking for stronger protection regarding the responsible use of data, along with greater oversight of digital activities, such as content standards for moral and social harmony reasons.

Such disparate regulatory initiatives could splinter the digital world. Quite apart from the lack of consensus on how to draw up the rules and regulations globally, lack of trust amongst the stakeholders also exacerbates the situation. Countries could decide to make their own rules, or congregate into different blocs. This is already beginning to happen. Companies would face a fragmented landscape across different markets, and consumers would face hurdles or end up with the inconvenience of paying higher prices as they look for integrated global services.

We should work towards global consensus on rules, norms and standards, to facilitate stable, secure and consistent online interactions across societies. Consumers and businesses will benefit from reduced compliance costs, easier market access, and better and more affordable services.

Even if the major countries are not able to reach consensus, small states do have the agency to act. For example, like-minded countries can work together on Digital Economy Agreements (DEAs) that align digital rules and standards. These will facilitate greater interoperability with protocols, gateways and bridges between digital systems for cross border digital trade and data flows. Singapore has concluded four DEAs with five countries – Australia, Chile, the Republic of Korea (ROK), New Zealand, and the UK. The pluri-lateral Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) which started between Singapore, New Zealand and Chile, now has Republic of Korea, China and Canada wanting to join. We hope others, whether in ASEAN or beyond, will also join DEPA or formalise digital agreements.

The second question is whether we will achieve the promise of a “flat” digital world with open access for all, or come under the dominance and market power of a few big tech companies.

The advent of the Internet promised a democratised digital space, where anyone could come online and freely communicate fresh ideas and exchange alternative viewpoints. However, over time, the network effect, amplified especially by the instantaneous power and reach of the internet, has meant that a handful of big tech corporations, the most innovative and entrepreneurial ones, have amassed immense influence. The social media platforms and search engines connect suppliers to consumers, app developers to device owners, and advertisers to targeted audiences. The platform business model multiplies the network effect further, leading often to ‘winner takes all’ outcomes. The digital giants now form the infrastructural backbone of an ever-expanding tech universe, serving as the interface of every interaction. If, for example, we decline to share our data or accept cookies, what alternatives do we realistically have, or will we be crowded out of the digital space?

The Big Tech companies have unmatched firepower, with market caps bigger than the GDP of most countries. Together, five companies (Apple, Amazon, Alphabet, Facebook and Microsoft) are projected to account for a fifth of all earnings accrued by the Standard & Poor’s 500 by 2030.

¹

Apart from financial firepower, these digital platforms now exercise substantial influence not only over what consumers see and buy, but also what information and news get the widest dissemination and traction.

In the US, there is now a re-examination of the US’s domestic law, Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, that gives internet companies protection in the US from liability for user generated content disseminated on their platforms. There is now recognition of the need to protect the US public from disinformation for example during elections or a pandemic, or prevent harmful or hateful content from radicalising individuals and leading them to extreme actions. Extreme views are finding greater traction than moderate ones, affecting social cohesion and consensus building as society becomes increasingly polarised within their own echo chambers. In Europe and the rest of the world, these questions have long been asked. Each country is finding their own answers as they each have different concerns and considerations, and their own history, societal norms and laws.

The solution is to work with, and not against Big Tech. These platforms are a force for good and the betterment of our lives, connecting underserved populations across the globe. They also drive investments towards even more innovative solutions and applications.

What government and consumers want to see is a better balance between the power of these companies, and their responsibility and obligation to consumers and society. Their founders began with a vision to serve consumers and the society they operate in. This is an opportune time to see how this is best done now, with the industry no longer in its infancy, but in a position of great strength and power. With great power comes great responsibility.

Governments also need to work with Big Tech to devise governance principles and rules that reflect this new power alignment and achieve better balance. We also need coordination among governments for better coherence across jurisdictions and preserve choice and optionality for consumers.

The third question is how we strike a balance between having pervasive connectivity and seamless access to digital services while having stronger security and privacy.

We can expect 5G, IoT, AI and the cloud to bring an avalanche of new devices, applications, and services. The number of IoT devices is projected to reach 64 billion globally, or about eight IoT devices on average for every person on this globe by 2025. Data analytics and AI promise more efficient and targeted services. More users and devices will also open up more potential vulnerabilities and increase the surface area for attack.

Just as we have building safety codes or traffic rules, we need to devise new ways to maintain the security and resilience of our systems. This will encourage consumers and businesses to be more willing and ready to embrace the benefits of new waves of technological innovation, with confidence and trust that they will be secure, and that their privacy will be respected and protected.

We will need to work together – governments, industry players, big and small, to develop new governance principles, frameworks, and standards for the digital commons to ensure the security of our systems and preserve trust and confidence.

It will not be easy to arrive at a global consensus, but we must take steps to get there. Singapore supports the creation of such a multilateral order in cyberspace. We will work together with all stakeholders in this endeavour. At the United Nations, our Permanent Representative to the UN in New York has been given the honour and been elected as the Chair of the 5-year Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on the security and use of ICT. We also contribute actively to the work of the GGE or Group of Governmental Experts.

Beyond frameworks and principles, we will need to establish objective, technical standards for cybersecurity. Singapore launched the Cybersecurity Labelling Scheme for consumer IoT devices in 2020. This has seen good take up among local and multinational device manufacturers. The four-level rating system builds common understanding of the cybersecurity provisions of a particular product and provides confidence and choice to consumers.

Countries should also invest in developing capabilities, so that we have real, concrete tools to defend our cyberspace. This will put the policies and principles we speak about into real action. Since 2014, Singapore has hosted INTERPOL’s Global Complex for Innovation, which is focused on developing new capabilities and tools to combat international crime. Cybercrime is one of these. It has a Cyber Fusion Centre, which together with its regional cybercrime operations desk, has coordinated several large-scale, successful operations against international cybercrime syndicates. We have also been working through the ASEAN Cyber Capacity Programme and the ASEAN-Singapore Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence to boost the region’s cyber security capacities.

These three questions are not a criticism of the digital revolution or tech companies. In fact, they are the very opposite. They are testimony to the success of the digital revolution and the great strides and contributions of our tech companies. The digital world has grown so big and pervasive that we now need to have this conversation between governments, businesses, and consumers to assess whether our policies are still fit for purpose, and how best to go about realising our collective vision of creating a more integrated, open and secure digital world.

I would like to thank all our participants for sharing their deep experience and insights on how we can address these issues. Singapore hopes to be a trusted and useful platform for such conversations and for global consensus to be built.

I wish all of you fulfilling and meaningful discussions. Thank you very much and have an enjoyable dinner. 

. . . . .

[1] https://techmonitor.ai/boardroom/power-of-tech-companies

Explore related topics

• Science and technology