Ministries, agencies to conduct comprehensive inspections of TikTok's operations in Vietnam

Hanoi (VNA) – Eight ministries and agencies will coordinate in conducting comprehensive, unscheduled inspections of TikTok's operations in Vietnam, according to the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC).

Apart from the MIC, the inspection delegation will comprise representatives from the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union Central Committee, and the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Information and Communications.

The inspections will be conducted on TikTok's operations both online and at its representative office in HCM City, focusing on its observance of regulations on social network service supply for domestic users, information censorship, user information verification, and prevention and removal of information violating legal regulations in Vietnam.

The checks will also target the handling of complaints filed by users, content recommendation algorithms, and user data collection, management, storage, and usage. Information safety and cyber security, observance of regulations on the advertisement and child protection, the fight against social evils in cyberspace, the observance of regulations on e-commerce service supply, and taxes will all come under scrutiny in the inspections.

Other activities to be probed include the management of celebrities, who work in arts and perform on TikTok, as well as TikTok's impact on young people, and the trend and role of the media.

TikTok, along with its Chinese counterpart Douyin, is a short-form video hosting service owned by Chinese company ByteDance.

Vietnam currently ranks 6th among the 10 countries with the largest number of TikTok users in the world. In February, there were about 49.9 million people using TikTok in Vietnam, according to DataReportal.

Last month, the MIC announced six major violations committed by TikTok in Vietnam.

First, TikTok failed to handle violations in content related to politics, hostile activities against the Party and Government, fake news, and harmful content.

Secondly, TikTok used an automated algorithm to create trends and spread content for views, regardless of its offensive content, which has a negative impact on the community and youth.

Thirdly, it lacked effective measures to prevent the sale of counterfeit goods, illicit drugs, and supplements of unknown origin.

Fourthly, this short-form video platform failed to manage the activities of TikTok idols, many of whom create inappropriate content to attract viewers. For example, some TikTok idols have recently created unsuitable online challenges, in which the more shocking and offensive the content is, the more gifts or money they receive. TikTok receives 70% of the total revenue from such challenges.

Fifthly, non-copyrighted content has been rampant on this platform without any effective prevention measures from TikTok. 

Le Quang Tu Do, head of the MIC’s Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information, said TikTok’s violations have caused severe consequences like facilitating the spread of fake news, socio-economic losses, and social unrest.

With comprehensive inspections, the ministry will roll out legal, economic, technical, diplomatic, and communication solutions to request cross-border platforms like TikTok to observe Vietnamese law./.