Spreading False Information and Causing Panic on Facebook and Zalo May Be Fined up to 20 Million VND

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To be specific, according to this Decree, a fine ranging from VND 10 million to VND 20 million shall be imposed for the act of exploiting social networks to perform any of the following actions:

- Providing, sharing false information, fake information, distorting, slandering, offending the reputation of agencies, organizations, personal honor, and dignity;

- Providing, sharing information promoting bad customs, superstitions, depravity, obscenity, not suitable with the ethnic customs and traditions;

- Providing, sharing information that vividly describes acts of killing, accidents, horror, or terrifying scenes;

- Providing, sharing baseless information causing public panic, inciting violence, crimes, social evils, gambling or serving gambling;

- Providing, sharing journalistic, literary, artistic, and publishing works without the consent of intellectual property owners or without circulation permission or already banned or confiscated;

- Advertising, propagating, sharing information about prohibited goods and services;

- Providing, sharing images of Vietnam's map without showing or incorrectly showing national sovereignty;

- Providing, sharing links to content on the internet that is prohibited.

Especially, the fine will range from VND 20 million to VND 30 million if disclosing information classified as state secrets, personal secrets, and other classified information that does not reach the level of criminal liability.

Furthermore, in addition to being fined, violators are also required to remove false or misleading information or any legally violating information resulting from the aforementioned actions.

Thus, according to this regulation, anyone who provides or shares inaccurate, fabricated information on platforms like Facebook, Zalo, causing public panic will be subject to a fine of up to VND 20 million and must remove such information from the social networks.

These penalty regulations are exceedingly necessary as, currently, the situation of providing, sharing fabricated, false, fake information on Facebook, Zalo, etc., causing public panic, is very prevalent, even inducing panic among the populace. This is especially critical as the entire country is facing the respiratory disease outbreak caused by the corona virus.

Nguyen Trinh

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