CCCS, ASAS and HSA Engage Social Media Influencers

On 20 September 2019, the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (“CCCS”) and the Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore (“ASAS”) co-hosted #TRUTH, an influencer marketing engagement session, with support from Health Sciences Authority (“HSA”). As the first combined outreach effort, the agencies sought to increase awareness of the regulations relevant to social media influencers.

Ms. Davina Wong, Senior Assistant Director, Consumer Protection Division, CCCS, shared on the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act (“CPFTA”) and how influencers should make clear disclosures and accurate representations.

This was followed by Mr. Ryan Lim, Chairman, Social Media Sub-Committee, ASAS, who shared about the key components of ASAS’s social media guidelines and expounded on the responsibilities between agencies, brand owners and influencers.

Ms. Ng Ying Lu, a regulatory specialist with the Medical Advertisement & Compliance Monitoring Unit, Vigilance & Compliance Brand, HSA, also supported the event by giving a talk on areas that influencers should take note of when promoting cosmetic products and health supplements.

The engagement session concluded with a panel question & answer session with CCCS’s Director of Consumer Protection Mr. Jack Teng and ASAS Chairman Prof. Ang Peng Hwa taking questions from attendees.