Prosecutors must be versatile to tackle challenges from AI-enabled crimes: Edwin Tong

The proliferation of online crimes and the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) are creating unprecedented challenges for prosecutors and criminal justice systems worldwide, said Law Minister Edwin Tong on Sept 8.

These challenges will require prosecutors to be more versatile, adopt a multidisciplinary and innovative mindset, and build on international partnerships, said Mr Tong, who is also Second Minister for Home Affairs.

He was delivering the keynote speech at the 30th Annual Conference and General Meeting of the International Association of Prosecutors held at the Shangri-La Singapore hotel.

More than 450 prosecutors from about 90 countries are in Singapore for the conference, which is hosted by the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) and ends on Sept 10.

At the opening ceremony on Sept 7, President Tharman Shanmugaratnam spoke about the violations of international law, and how justice gaps of this scale undermine stability, breed cynicism and accentuate the broader corrosion of trust in public institutions.

On Sept 8, Mr Tong emphasised the need for prosecutors to go beyond traditional skills, embrace technology and collaborate internationally to effectively combat cross-border crimes.

“We are witnessing a global proliferation in financial crimes such as scams, money laundering and securities fraud,” the minister said.

International police organisation Interpol estimates that US$2 trillion (S$2.57 trillion) to US$3 trillion of illicit proceeds is channelled through the global financial system annually, he noted.

In Singapore, $456.4 million was lost to scams in the first half of 2025.

Mr Tong said these crime trends converge with a time of intense technological developments.

Generative AI (Gen AI) apps such as ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot allow users to easily generate text, images and videos, while future advancements promise to revolutionise work and opportunities.

But these technologies also dramatically lower the barriers to entry for crime.

Criminals can easily create a convincing phishing e-mail with the style and tonality of colleagues and government agencies, or a deepfake voice message that sounds almost exactly like our loved ones, Mr Tong said.

He also noted that, earlier in 2025, the Singapore Police Force collaborated with its counterparts in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Thailand in an operation against online child sexual exploitation.

The operation resulted in a total of 435 arrests, with officers seizing child sexual abuse materials, including those created using Gen AI tools.

Mr Tong said technology also amplifies the scale of criminal offending beyond borders.

He gave the example of a Northern Irish man named Alexander McCartney, who befriended young girls on social media platforms and encouraged them to send him indecent images of themselves.

McCartney is estimated to have preyed on 3,500 victims across 30 countries. One victim, a 12-year-old girl in the US, was driven to suicide.

Mr Tong said that it is critical for prosecutors to keep abreast of technological developments to understand how they facilitate crime.

Building international partnerships and cooperation is also needed to effectively combat cross-border crime.

“In a world where the barriers to entry for crime are getting lower and lower by the day, fuelled by AI, by technology, we really cannot afford to build walls around our own enforcement efforts,” Mr Tong said.

Collaboration can take many forms – conferences where best practices are shared, bilateral agreements to strengthen formal partnerships, and mutual legal assistance, which includes the sharing of information to facilitate investigations across borders.

Prosecutors also need to share their experience and expertise, and help find effective legal and policy solutions, according to the minister.

He noted that the Singapore Government recently moved to strengthen prosecutorial capabilities and processes for dealing with properties linked to suspected criminal activities, following feedback from the AGC and other stakeholders.

The prosecutor is a vital piece in the puzzle – connecting the many parts that make a criminal justice system work well, noted Mr Tong.

“As the puzzle becomes more and more complex... as we confront the challenges of a fractured global order and tech-enabled transnational crime, it becomes increasingly clear that the role of the prosecutor must evolve correspondingly,” the minister said.

On the sidelines of the conference, Mr Tong and Kazakhstan’s Prosecutor General Berik Assylov signed an agreement on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters.

It is the first such treaty Singapore has signed with a Central Asian state, the Law Ministry said in a media statement.

The agreement will enhance cooperation between the two countries in the prevention and suppression of crime, offering a framework for requesting and providing legal assistance in criminal matters.

This includes assistance in obtaining information and evidence, carrying out searches and seizures, and restraining or confiscating property traceable to proceeds of crime.

Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction.

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