Contents of State management of personal data protection in Vietnam

What is personal data under the law in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Decree 13/2023/ND-CP, personal data refers to electronic information in the form of symbols, letters, numbers, images, sounds, or equivalences associated with an individual or used to identify an individual. The personal data includes general personal data and sensitive personal data.

(1) General personal data includes:

- Last name, middle name and first name, other names (if any);

- Date of birth; date of death or going missing;

- Gender;

- Place of birth, registered place of birth; place of permanent residence; place of temporary residence; current place of residence; hometown; contact address;

- Nationality;

- Personal image;

- Phone number; ID Card number, personal identification number, passport number, driver’s license number, license plate, taxpayer identification number, social security number and health insurance card number;

- Marital status;

- Information about the individual’s family relationship (parents, children);

- Digital account information; personal data that reflects activities and activity history in cyberspace;

- Information associated with an individual or used to identify an individual other than that specified in Clause 4 of this Article.

(2) Sensitive personal data refers to personal data in association with individual privacy which, when being infringed, will directly affect an individual's legal rights and interests, including:

- Political and religious opinions;

- Health condition and personal information stated in health record, excluding information on blood group;

- Information about racial or ethnic origin;

- Information about genetic data related to an individual's inherited or acquired genetic characteristics;

- Information about an individual’s own biometric or biological characteristics;

- Information about an individual’s sex life or sexual orientation.

- Data on crimes and criminal activities collected and stored by law enforcement agencies;

- Information on customers of credit institutions, foreign bank branches, payment service providers and other licensed institutions, including: customer identification as prescribed by law, accounts, deposits, deposited assets, transactions, organizations and individuals that are guarantors at credit institutions, bank branches, and payment service providers;

- Personal location identified via location services;

- Other specific personal data as prescribed by law that requires special protection.

Contents of State management of personal data protection in Vietnam (Internet image)

Contents of State management of personal data protection in Vietnam

Pursuant to Article 5 of Decree 13/2023/ND-CP, the contents of state management include:

- Requesting competent authorities to promulgate or promulgate within its jurisdiction legal documents, and directing and organizing the implementation of legal documents on protection of personal data.

- Formulating and organizing the implementation of strategies, policies, schemes, projects, programs and plans for protection of personal data.

- Providing guidance on measures, procedures and standards of protection of personal data for agencies, organizations and individuals in accordance with law.

- Disseminating and educating the law on protection of personal data; communicating and disseminating skills and knowledge about protection of personal data.

- Developing and providing training and refresher training for officials, public employees and persons assigned to protect personal data.

- Inspecting the observance of law on protection of personal data; handling complaints, denunciations and violations against regulations on protection of personal data as prescribed by law.

- Compiling statistics, and giving information and reports on protection of personal data and the observance of law on personal data protection to competent authorities.

- Encouraging international cooperation in protection of personal data.

Mai Thanh Loi

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