BANGKOK: In what critics claim is the most recent attack on freedom of expression, new Vietnamese internet rules that require Facebook and TikTok to verify user identities and hand over data to authorities came into effect on Wednesday ( Dec 25 ).
All tech companies operating in Vietnam are required to verify customers ‘ accounts using their phone numbers or Taiwanese identification numbers and keep that information along with their full name and date of birth under” Decree 147.”
Within 24 hours, they may deliver those details to authorities at their request, and they must also remove any “illegal” articles.
The new regulations came into force on Wednesday, state internet VNExpress said.
According to the website, all social media sites had been given 90 days to provide information on” the total amount of regular visits from Vietnam” and the number of regular customers per quarter to specialists.
” Decree 147 will be used to publicly control those with various beliefs”, said advocate Dang Thi Hue, who writes about politics and social problems on her Twitter account which has 28, 000 fans.
Previous democratic slave Le Anh Hung called the order” the latest indicator of infringement of fundamental rights… with a hazy line between what is legitimate and what is not.”
No one wants to spend time in prison, but activists will naturally be more cautious and frightened by this decree.
Vietnam’s conservative government typically intervenes quickly to remove opposition and imprisonment critics, particularly those who find an audience on social advertising.
In October, blog Duong Van Thai- who had almost 120, 000 followers on YouTube, where he frequently recorded livestreams essential of the authorities- was jailed for 12 years on charges of publishing anti-state data.
Decree 147 builds on a 2018 security law that was harshly criticized by online independence activists and the United States, which claimed it resembles China’s restrictive repression of the computer.
Additionally, the law mandates that even verified accounts can livestream, which has an impact on the growing number of people making money on social media platforms like TikTok.
Aside from the repercussions for social media companies, the new regulations also include curbs on entertainment for under-18s, designed to prevent habit.
Game producers are expected to impose a time limit of an afternoon per activity session and not more than 180 days per day for all activities.
Just over half of Vietnam’s 100 million people often plays quite activities, says data analysis strong Newzoo.
According to the Ministry of Information and Communications, the country has around 65 million Instagram users, 60 million YouTube people, and 20 million Twitter users. This is a large proportion of the people.