Koh Boon Ki, a 22-year-old influencer on TikTok, has been accused for doxxing.
In what she thought would help others, Koh, a pharmacy graduate from the National University of Singapore, started a Telegram group chat purportedly for all "girls from all the dating apps in Singapore" to share their information about men to avoid so that they wouldn't repeat each others' mistakes.
Koh shared this with her more than a hundred thousand followers on TikTok, to "discuss the guys we've talked to and dates we've been on (imagine the excel sheet we can make)".
In other words, Koh created a group about potential dates, and to crowdsource information and gossips about how to avoid them if they are bad.
“Just tell me all I should know before I even start talking to him,” she said.
Her idea of creating the group, is because she was tired of negative things she experienced when she dated.
But her idea backfired, simply because doxxing is frowned by many people on the web, and also because creating a group where people can share their bad experiences have the potential to be abused.
Through the group, called "sg dating adventures", members can see and contribute to a Google spreadsheet, titled "Dating Guide SG."
There, members could anonymously share details about the people they had supposedly dated or had a relationship with, and the reasons not to date them.
The document that was split into two tabs, labelled "Blacklist" and "Avoid," include reasons, like being a scammer or cheater.
Members also reported more serious ones, like being sexually assaulted.
Due to Koh being an influencer, and the nature of the group, the document purportedly grew as more and more users joined and contributed.
Soon, netizens that started realizing about the presence of such group, started criticizing Koh, saying that all the information in the document could be considered doxxing, which is illegal.
Many TikTok users started lauding Koh for her actions, with others urging her to shut down the group, saying that it could be abused to frame innocent people with false accusations.
What's more, the Telegram group also derailed from its original intention, to involve discussions about the sexual prowess or lack thereof of certain men.
Realizing that people started criticizing her, Koh later deleted the Telegram group.
In a video statement on her TikTok, Koh said she "didn't put enough consideration into setting boundaries and rules within the chat to moderate the discussion," and that she didn't realize "that it was also slowly spiraling into a name-and-shame group.”
"It did not turn out the way I imagined, and it turned out way worse."
"The document is very incriminating and I do regret its existence. I have since asked the creator of the Google Sheet to delete the document," said Koh.
She claimed that she has learnt her lesson, but added that she still thinks that having a “girl’s group chat” with proper rules is a fun idea.
By creating and promoting the group, Koh may be liable to criminal prosecution under the Protection from Harassment Act (Poha).
While contributors of the group can also be caught under Poha, the first person that will the authorities will call, would likely be the creator of the group.
Under Poha, those who publish the personal information of another in order to cause harassment, alarm or distress, may be jailed for up to six months and fined up to $5,000. And those convicted of defamation under the Penal Code may be jailed for up to two years and fined.
While the document is said to have been deleted, it is for certain that copies of it exist.