In bid to cut out cheats, SkillsFuture enhances fraud detection systems

SINGAPORE — Following a record multi-million-dollar scam last year, SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) has strengthened its fraud detection systems with data analytics to detect bogus claims more quickly.

The agency said in a press release on Thursday (Nov 29) that its computer systems have been improved to detect anomalies in claim submissions based on historical claim patterns. The suspicious claims will then be highlighted for further investigations.

To sharpen the system’s ability and speed at which it detects future cheating cases, confirmed fraudulent claims are fed back through a process into the system's algorithm.

Data will be verified with other government agencies such as the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority to ensure its integrity.

These will strengthen SSG’s investigation of suspected fraudulent activities, and speed up enforcement actions.

The enhancements were made following the recommendations of an inter-agency task force, which was set up in November last year to conduct a thorough review of SSG’s fraud mitigation capabilities.

Between May and October last year, a syndicate used a network of nine dormant entities — three training providers and six applicant entities — to submit 8,386 fraudulent course fee grant applications and a corresponding 8,391 claims to SSG.

As a result, SSG disbursed S$39.9 million in course fee subsidies, in what is the biggest case of a government agency being defrauded to date.

On Tuesday, the first of five individuals in the syndicate — 32-year-old Lee Chi Wai — was jailed five years and eight months after pleading guilty to three charges under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act. The offences included concealing more than S$6.6 million in cash and 11kg of gold, which formed part of the S$40 million disbursed as a result of these bogus claims.

In Parliament earlier this year, Mr Ong Ye Kung, then Education Minister (Higher Education and Skills), said that while not all fraudulent activities can be prevented, this scam should have been detected earlier.

Aside from this high-profile case, scams involving SkillsFuture credits have also been on the rise.

In February this year, the police warned the public of scammers who have been approaching Singaporeans to sign up for courses using their SkillsFuture credits. These individuals have been telling residents that their credits will expire, and that they will not be eligible for top-ups later.

The agency clarified that there is no expiry date for SkillsFuture credits, and that these credits can be used for any course in the training exchange in myskillsfuture.sg. The SkillsFuture Credit scheme, which gives Singaporeans aged 25 and above a S$500 credit to attend courses by approved training providers, was started in 2016.

SSG said that it adopts a range of enforcement strategies when handling potential abuse cases.

For example, enquiries or site visits are conducted, and immediate administrative actions are taken to withhold disbursement while investigations are taking place. Funding for training providers will be cut off as soon as a case of suspected fraud or abuse is established.

Mr Ng Cher Pong, chief executive officer of SSG, said: "With fraudsters devising increasingly elaborate scams, our fraud risk management system is evolving to better safeguard the funds earmarked for the skills development of our workforce.

“Specifically, we are making better use of technology and data to enhance our capabilities. Coupled with a firm enforcement stance, these measures will serve as a strong deterrent against potential abuse.”

The public may help to report suspicious individuals, training providers or organisations via SSG’s whistleblowing channels. These reports can be submitted at ssg.gov.sg/feedback.

SSG said that it takes a serious view of any individual, training provider or organisation that abuses SkillsFuture funding schemes, and will not hesitate to act against any who contravene its funding rules or terms of use.

Besides taking enforcement actions for offences under the SSG Act, SSG will refer potential fraud cases to the Commercial Affairs Department of the Singapore Police Force.