GovTech refreshes logo for Singpass

The Government Technology Agency (GovTech) has unveiled a new logo for its Singpass mobile app, as part of its new brand identity. According to a press release, the rebranding comes as GovTech looks to deliver “an even better Singpass” that offers new features and provides convenient access to a larger range of services. The new logo is updated on the Singpass' website and mobile app. 

Adapting a modern typeface for its font, the new Singpass logo (pictured bottom) sees a change in the letter "i" in its name. The new letter is said to be a logomark that represents both a human silhouette and keyhole. This, according to GovTech, reflects the government’s twin focus to provide citizen-centric digital services while ensuring security and trust in the national digital identity platform. The logo will retain the red and black colours from its previous logo (pictured above), which GovTech said signifies the continuity of Singpass services to meet the needs of residents and businesses in an increasingly digitalised society. MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to GovTech for additional information.

Along with the rebranding, Singpass will be working with businesses to co-create innovation solutions for Singaporeans through its open application programming interfaces (APIs). Tapping onto this feature, businesses and agencies can integrate it with its services to enhance customer experiences and improve business efficiency. For example, the use of Singpass for customer logins removes the need for organisations to maintain their own authentication platforms and users can avoid the hassle of managing many different sets of credentials, GovTech said. 

The new Singpass also looks to provide access to more everyday services across sectors for Singapore residents. This ranges from the banking and insurance sector, to healthcare and charities. Users will be able to retrieve their personal information, digitally sign documents and remotely authorise transactions on their Singpass app, without using passwords. 

Beyond digital transactions, Singpass also launched the digital IC function on its app last September. This offers users an alternative method of identity verification, allowing them to scan their digital IC barcode at kiosks located in libraries and polyclinics. By digitalising everyday transactions, GovTech looks to save time for both residents and businesses by doing away with hardcopy documents and streamlining processes for quicker approvals for applications.

Although digitalisation brings about convenience for users of the app, cybersecurity is a key concern given the rise of data breaches in recent years. In 2018, a major cyberattack infiltrated the SingHealth database containing over 1.5 million patient personal particulars and outpatient dispensed medicines. With the improved Singpass app, GovTech promises safer transactions with the use of cryptographic technology, which it claims provides higher assurance of authenticity and integrity, and facilitates non-repudiability (the assurance that someone cannot deny validity of something) in digital transactions. GovTech added that Singpass users are issued identity certificates by the National Certification Authority, as a means of authenticating a person’s identity for greater identity assurance. For instance, when digitally signing a document using the Singpass app, the signature is cryptographically linked to the user and validated at the point of signing, minimising the risk of fraud.

Last but not least, GovTech touts a more accessible Singpass app for all. Key transactional pages on the Singpass website and app will be made available in Singapore’s four official languages by end of this year, and more authentication methods have also been introduced to make digital transactions fuss-free for everyone. Singpass also caters to users without smartphones, who can authenticate by receiving One-Time Passwords via SMS or with a quick scan of their face using face verification on web browsers or at kiosks. These features enable users without mobile devices to continue accessing services with ease, GovTech said.

Last October, GovTech appointed Ogilvy and LEWIS for marketing and PR duties, following a pitch called earlier that year. The length of appointment is two years, with an option to extend for another two years. Both agencies are tasked to support GovTech’s work in communicating Singapore’s Digital Government initiatives in overseas markets such as US, Europe, Asia and Australasia.

Kwok Quek Sin, senior director for National Digital Identity at GovTech, said: “With this brand refresh, we want to ensure that Singpass continues to deliver value, while developing digital capabilities necessary for the growth of a trusted digital ecosystem. The new brand offers an exciting glimpse into the possibilities and future of our Smart Nation – one that is enabled by the trusted national digital identity, a platform which we can rely on for all of our transactions.”

In the last three years, more than 10 features have been added to Singpass. From the introduction of the Singpass app in October 2018 to new features such as digital IC, face verification and digital signing, Singpass has been evolving and now powers more than 1,400 services offered by over 340 public and private sector organisations, according to GovTech.

Its user base has also grown significantly. Of the four million residents on Singpass, more than 2.5 million users are on the Singpass app with over 90% of them using the app at least once a month. The Singpass app is also said to be one of the most downloaded apps in Singapore in 2020 and has tripled its user base in the past year.

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