Any person committing the unauthorized use of customer's information in Vietnam may face a fine of up to 30 million VND. This content is stipulated in Decree 98/2020/ND-CP issued by the Government of Vietnam on August 26, 2020.
Article table of contents
Vietnam: A fine of up to 30 million VND for unauthorized collection of consumers’ personal information in online selling (Illustrative image)
1. Penalties for unauthorized collection of consumers’ personal information in Vietnam
Currently, many people participate in selling goods on online platforms due to the myriad benefits it offers. Buyers just need to provide some information and a phone number to place an order. However, some online platforms engage in the unauthorized collection of customer information without their consent. Therefore, to ensure consumer rights and deter online platforms from extracting customer information, Decree 98/2020/ND-CP has stipulated the following penalties:
A fine ranging from VND 20.000.000 to VND 30.000.000 shall be imposed for committing one of the following violations:
+ Collecting consumers’ personal information without the prior consent of the information owner;
+ Establishing mechanisms for compelling by default consumers to give consent for the sharing, revelation or use of their personal information for advertising and other commercial purposes;
+ Using consumers’ personal information against the notified purposes and scope.
In addition, violators may also face suspension of e-commerce activities (prohibited from selling online) from 6 to 12 months in case of repeated violations or recurrences, and be required to forfeit any illegal gains derived from the above violations.
Some online selling platforms currently require users to provide personal information (ID, phone number) to access the products they wish to buy. They then illegally supply this data to third parties in need of customer data, resulting in leaks of customer information. Therefore, Decree 98/2020/ND-CP has stipulated strict penalties for such actions, with a fine of up to 30 million VND.
2. Other regulations on penalties for violations against regulations on the protection of personal information in e-commerce in Vietnam
Decree 98/2020/ND-CP also stipulates the following penalties:
- A fine ranging from VND 1.000.000 to VND 5.000.000 shall be imposed for committing one of the following violations:
+ Formulating a personal information protection policy against regulations;
+ Failing to publish the personal information protection policy at a prominent position on the e-commerce website.
- A fine ranging from VND 5.000.000 to VND 10.000.000 shall be imposed for committing one of the following violations:
+ Failing to clearly provide consumers with the personal information protection policy before or when collecting information;
+ Failing to check, update, correct or remove personal information at the request of the information owner;
+ Failing to provide mechanisms for information owners to clearly express their consent when collecting information via online functions on website, email, message or other methods as agreed upon by the parties;
+ Failing to provide mechanisms for information owners to decide to allow or refuse to allow the use of their personal information in the following cases: sharing, revealing or transferring information to a third party or using personal information for advertising or introduction of products and other commercial information.
- A fine ranging from VND 10.000.000 to VND 20.000.000 shall be imposed for committing one of the following violations:
+ Failing to establish mechanisms for receiving and settling consumers’ complaints about the use of their personal information for wrong purposes or beyond the notified scope;
+ Failing to formulate, promulgate or implement policies for ensuring safety and security of collection and use of consumers’ personal information;
+ Failing to publish policies for protection of consumers’ payment information on the website having online payment function.
Thus, the Government of Vietnam has comprehensively stipulated penalty regulations, anticipating potential risks related to customer information safety. Given the significant data leaks recently (such as many individuals being scammed by impostors claiming to be from large online selling platforms), these regulations are indeed necessary. These regulations not only help protect consumer rights but also promote online selling platforms to improve their security policies, thereby providing the best and safest service.
Legal basis:
Nguyen Phu
