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About 13,400 accounts suspected of bot activity were suspended by the three driving schools in Singapore last year, said Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam on Wednesday (May 6).<\/p>\n
The schools are: Singapore Safety Driving Centre in Woodlands, ComfortDelGro Driving Centre in Ubi, and Bukit Batok Driving Centre\u00a0<\/p>\n
He was responding to a parliamentary question by MP Gabriel Lam (Sembawang GRC), who asked whether the Government has data on how widespread the use of bots or third-party services is in securing driving lesson slots.<\/p>\n
Lam, a first-term MP, also asked whether a centralised or queue-based booking system will be considered to ensure fair access for learners.<\/p>\n
The issue of bots being used by learners to reserve and book lesson slots is not new.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Since 2024, services for “camper” bots or booking bots have popped up on e-commerce platforms such as Carousell. Those interested in such services would be directed to a Telegram or Discord link.<\/p>\n
There, learners can pay for bot services to book free slots, or be notified when a slot becomes available for booking.<\/p>\n
While there are no laws against using bots or scripts to conduct web scraping, the Traffic Police (TP) have taken action, directing the three driving schools to suspend nearly 13,400 accounts last year for alleged bot activity.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“TP has directed the schools to also implement anti-bot measures such as CAPTCHA authentication and account restrictions when they detect suspicious logins,” Shanmugam said in his written reply.<\/p>\n
However, there are no plans to implement a centralised booking system as the three schools all have different commercial and operating models, the minister explained.<\/p>\n
For this reason, it is more “appropriate, expedient and practical” for the driving schools to design and manage their respective booking systems, he said.<\/p>\n
But the minister did acknowledge that there is a mismatch between the supply and demand for Class 3 lessons, adding that the Ministry of Home Affairs and TP are studying additional supply measures to improve the situation.<\/p>\n
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