Vietnam had TikTok sign an admission of wrongdoing and undertake specific corrective actions, authorities said at a conference held on Friday. 

Speaking at the event, Le Quang Tu Do, head of the Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information under the Ministry of Information and Communications, said that the rate of prevention and eradication of malicious content in cyberspace, encompassing companies like Meta's Facebook, Google's YouTube, and TikTok, achieved its highest level in the first half of 2023.

In January-June, Facebook took down 2,549 posts, deactivated 12 accounts, and eliminated 54 advertising pages at the request of Vietnamese authorities. 

YouTube removed 6,101 videos and terminated seven channels, while TikTok eliminated 415 links and banned 149 accounts over offensive content.

In addition, Facebook took down 484 pages that advertised gambling games, along with 72 other accounts and pages promoting weapons and explosives. 

The platform also removed 2,444 links advertising illicit services. 

YouTube removed 632 videos that promoted the sale and hunting of wild animals and provided instructions on weapon-making.

It also eliminated over 2,000 drug and supplement advertisements, as well as advertising content using automatic algorithms. 

Moreover, it disabled monetization features on 49 Facebook pages and accounts and 50 YouTube channels, along with 158 websites that violated advertising guidelines.

The three platforms’ response rate to authorities’ requests exceeded 90 percent while the content removal was at record levels.

Furthermore, there has been a notable improvement in the speed and efficiency of handling harmful and toxic content, with a processing time of under 12 hours, Do said. 

Increased manpower has been mobilized, utilizing a combination of manual efforts and artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms, to scan, block, and promptly remove unlawful content.

The Ministry of Information and Communications and multiple ministries and agencies last month undertook a comprehensive inspection of TikTok’s local operations and preliminary results showed various violations by the short-video platform.

The case marks the first time Vietnam has an international social media platform sign an acknowledgment of wrongdoing and implement specific corrective actions which await an official announcement later this month.

After addressing the TikTok case, Do’s agency is making efforts to develop strategies to handle similar issues in other cross-border platforms. 

The agency is also planning to explore collaborations with key opinion leaders (KOLs) to launch an awareness campaign against online disinformation.

Vietnam in recent years has issued several regulations together with a cybersecurity law that target foreign social media platforms in a bid to battle disinformation in news.

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