Updated May 23, 2025, 6:00 p.m. ET
Vietnam’s government has instructed telecommunications companies to block the Telegram messaging app after the Ministry of Public Security concluded it was being used to disseminate “anti-state” contents, state media reported Friday.
The Telecommunications Department under the Ministry of Science and Technology issued the order on Wednesday. Telecommunications service providers were instructed to take measures to block the app and report to the ministry by June 2, Vietnam News Agency said.
If nothing changes, Telegram will become the first encrypted messaging app to be banned in Vietnam. Reuters reported that the app was still available inside Vietnam on Friday.
The order originated from a Ministry of Public Security document that found that out of a total of 9,600 Telegram channels and groups existing in Vietnam, 68% were classified as “bad and toxic.” Among them, many groups and associations “with tens of thousands of participants” had “disseminated anti-state contents”. It cited fraud, drug trafficking and “cases suspected of being related to terrorism” among the illegal activities carried out through the app.
The groups, according to the Ministry of Public Security, were established by “opposing and reactionary elements.”
Vietnam’s communist government has tightened controls on online information available inside the country. It has regularly blocked websites belonging to independent newspapers and foreign news outlets, including RFA Vietnamese. It has also pressured Facebook, the most widely used social network in Vietnam, to increase censorship of political content.
The Telecommunications Department provided two legal grounds to justify the new ban on Telegram.
It cited Article 9 of the Telecommunications Law, which prohibits “taking advantage of telecommunications activities to oppose the state” and requires telecommunications service providers in Vietnam to register their operations. According to the Telecommunications Department, Telegram “failed to comply with the regulations.”
It also cited Decree 147 on Internet Services and Online Information which requires companies providing cross-border internet services to cooperate with the Vietnamese government in removing information deemed to violate the law.
Telegram expressed surprise over the official notice and said it was processing its response.
“Telegram is surprised by these statements. We have responded to legal requests from Vietnam on time,“ Remi Vaughn from the Telegram Press Team told RFA by e-mail.
“This morning, we received a formal notice from the Authority of Communications regarding a standard service notification procedure required under new telecom regulations. The deadline for the response is May 27, and we are processing the request," Vaughn said.
Edited by Mat Pennington.
Updated with comment from Telegram.
