On 13 July 2023, the Consumer Product Safety Office (CPSO) issued several notices to retailers and online sellers of products for children on the safety hazards posed by magnetic ball toys, water beads and electric toys containing button batteries that are improperly secured.
The CPSO stated that these products must not be supplied or sold if marketed directly or indirectly as a toy for children under 14 years old. Where consumers are reasonably able to infer that the product is a toy from the packaging, the packaging must clearly state that the product is not suitable for children below 14 years old, with at least one such statement in English.

Phase 2 of the voluntary notification for health supplements and traditional medicines will commence on 1 August 2023. The scope of the present voluntary notification for health supplements and traditional medicines will be expanded to cover more types of health supplements and traditional medicines.

On 17 July 2023, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) proposed the new regulation for active ingredients under the Health Products Act.
Against the increasing complexity in the manufacturing and supply chain of active ingredients, streamlined and risk-based regulatory controls will ensure that active ingredients consistently meet appropriate quality standards. The HSA has therefore seen the need to consolidate and enhance regulatory controls for active ingredients under the Health Products Act.

On 27 July 2023, the Ministry of Health announced the rebranding of Singapore’s health tech agency, formerly known as the Integrated Health Information Systems to Synapxe.
The Ministry of Health also outlined five key priorities of Synapxe, namely: (i) national repository for patients’ medical records; (ii) system for remote healthcare; (iii) national billing system; (iv) strong cyber and data security; and (v) looking into the future and exploring possibilities, such as generative artificial intelligence.

On 18 July 2023, the PDPC issued two public consultation papers, seeking views on: (a) the proposed clarifications on how the PDPA applies to the collection and use of personal data to develop and deploy artificial intelligence (AI) systems that embed machine learning models used to make decisions, recommendations or predictions; and (b) the proposed Advisory Guidelines on the PDPA for children’s personal data, covering issues such as obtaining children’s consent, using children’s personal data and according higher standards of protection to children’s personal data.

In a recent decision by the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) in Re Fullerton Healthcare Group Pte Limited and Agape CP Holdings Pte Ltd [2023] SGPDPC 5, the PDPC found that the respondents breached the protection obligation under the Personal Data Protection Act and ordered each of them to pay a financial penalty.

The Online Criminal Harms Bill was passed in parliament on 5 July 2023, after its second reading. The bill follows a suite of legislation aimed at protecting the public from harms in the online space and introduces mechanisms for authorities to more effectively tackle online criminal activity.

Phase 2 of the Healthcare Services Act 2020 (HCSA) has been implemented with effect from 26 June 2023. Under Phase 2, medical or dental healthcare providers who deliver services outside the premises of clinics and via teleconsultation will be required to hold a HCSA license, along with service providers offering outpatient medical and dental services, nuclear medicine, and outpatient renal dialysis, among others.

In June 2023, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) participated in a one-week INTERPOL-led, internet-based operation involving 16 member countries targeting the sale of illegal health products. The HSA announced that it had removed over 2,000 listings of illegal health products from local e-commerce platforms and detected over 300 parcels shipped into Singapore from overseas containing illegal sexual enhancement products during a week of intensified surveillance from 1 June to 7 June 2023.

A Singapore-based healthcare services provider and its vendor have been fined a total of SGD 68,000 following a data breach incident which led to patients’ data being put up for sale on the dark web in 2021.