Vietnam’s telecoms regulator has reportedly ordered the country’s telcos to block messaging app Telegram over its alleged failure to prevent its users from using the app to commit crimes under Vietnamese law.
According to a report from Reuters on Friday, the Vietnam Telecommunications Authority – which operates under the Ministry of Science and Technology – gave the order after the Ministry of Public Security’s Department of Cyber Security and Hi-tech Crime Prevention issued a document claiming that 68% of the 9,600 channels and groups on Telegram in Vietnam were “malicious”.
The document, dated May 21, accuses people using those channels and groups of violating laws covering fraud, drug trafficking, terrorism-related activities and “spreading anti-government documents”, the report said.
According to VNExpress, Telegram is also accused of failing to comply with new regulations enacted at the start of the year that require internet-based telecom service providers to report violations occurring on their platforms. Government officials claim Telegram has ignored requests by the police to share user data as part of criminal investigations.
According to the official Vietnam News Agency, the document instructs all telecoms operators to “deploy solutions and measures to prevent Telegram's activities in Vietnam” and report their compliance plans and outcomes by June 2.
Telegram said in a statement to Reuters that it is “surprised” by the move, saying that it has responded to legal requests from Vietnam on time.
Al Jazeera reports that there are roughly 11.8 million Telegram users in Vietnam, citing figures from data extraction company SOAX.
Telegram has faced such accusations before from governments around the world, as its strong encryption and user privacy features make it harder for police to track down individuals using the app for criminal activity or spreading disinformation. Over 30 countries have slapped temporary or permanent bans on Telegram since 2015. It’s currently banned indefinitely in China, Thailand and Iran.
