A Singapore Cabinet minister and the head of the government agency at the centre of the saga over unmasking National Registration Identity Card (NRIC) numbers apologised to the public on Thursday during a press conference.
“We are very sorry to have caused them much anxiety,” said Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo, adding that the public’s concerns are taken seriously.
“We had wanted to give them better protection, and this required a change in our policy involving the use of NRIC numbers, because the current situation leaves us vulnerable.”
The government had intended to make the change only after explaining to citizens the rationale but before it could do so, the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) went ahead and launched its Bizfile portal, with a search function that produced people’s names and full NRIC numbers.
“On behalf of ACRA, I would like to apologise for causing anxiety and concerns to members of the public over the disclosure of NRIC numbers on our Bizfile portal,” ACRA’s chief executive Chia-Tern Huey Min said.
Chia-Tern said the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) had in July “issued a circular for government agencies to cease any planned use of masked NRIC numbers in new business processes and services”.
This was part of a wider government effort to uphold the use of NRIC numbers as a unique identifier, and to move away from the use of masked NRIC numbers, which provides a false sense of security, she said.