Vietnam wants to stop anonymous social media accounts

Vietnam wants to try to prevent online scams by requiring social media users to verify their identities. 

The government wants to ban anonymous social media accounts on platforms like Facebook

The rules will apply to both local and foreign social media platforms, but it's unclear how they will be enforced.

This is the latest update to restrictions on social media in Vietnam. Last year, platforms had to remove fake news within 24 hours instead of 48. 

In 2022, there were new laws that required tech companies to store users' data locally. 

Human Rights Watch, a human rights NGO, is concerned about the new rules. The group says the rules could be bad for freedom of expression and privacy rights. 

The new rules are called the Telecommunications Law Amendment. These changes are expected by the end of 2023, but the exact details of the changes are not clear yet.

Not all service providers in Vietnam currently offer identity verification, but both people and organizations will have to comply with the new rules. 

Nguyen Thanh Lam, from the Ministry of Information, says that the government can identify people who break the law on social media. However, it is difficult for the ministry to find these people because they use applications that work across different countries. 

According to the 2023 World Press Freedom rankings, Vietnam ranked 178 out of 180, slightly higher than North Korea and China.