"Punch" into the cybercrime den

Speaking to a reporter from Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper, a representative of MobiFone said that the network operator had blocked the Telegram application since May 26, just a few days after receiving a request from the authorities. Similarly, another network operator also confirmed that it had implemented a solution to block this messaging platform as soon as it was requested by the management agency.

Strong hand to prevent

Telegram has many advantages for users - especially techies and business people - to choose because of its security and convenience. This platform is also used as a form of receiving OTP codes (one-time passwords) for free and conveniently. However, this is also a favorable space for criminal groups to take advantage of to operate, especially cyber criminals, drug criminals, reactionaries...

On May 10, Hanoi City Police said they had received a report from a young man about being scammed out of more than VND3.5 billion related to "call girls" on the Telegram platform. Many other cases such as spreading pornographic images, disguised gambling, calling for investment... have also been reported by users recently.

According to the reporter's records, before being blocked, the Telegram platform was active with thousands of groups exchanging malicious information, attracting a huge number of participants. For example, a group hacking home cameras had more than 84,200 members, another group specializing in hacking bank accounts had nearly 10,000 members... A report published in September 2024 by security firm Kaspersky also pointed out that cybercriminals often use Telegram to conduct underground transactions.

Many people expressed their agreement with the "strong" decision of the management agency to minimize the risk of causing damage to both property and reputation, honor for users, especially when deepfake technology (impersonation) using artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly developing. Some users decided to return to messaging platforms that are quite popular in Vietnam such as Messenger, Zalo, Viber... to maintain personal and work connections.

"Those of us who work in the technology field are quite fond of Telegram, but community safety must come first. After Telegram was disconnected, we switched our operations to WhatsApp, Viber..." - said Mr. Le Tuan, an IT employee (District 1, Ho Chi Minh City).

However, after being blocked from messaging on Telegram, on technology forums or social network X, many user accounts "showed" the community how to "overcome the barrier" to continue accessing this application, such as installing a proxy or using a VPN (virtual private network).

Users in Vietnam are currently no longer able to send messages on the Telegram platform. Photo: LE TINH

Don't stop at Telegram

Experts say that suspending Telegram's operations in Vietnam is a tough and necessary step to clean up the network environment.

MSc. Pham Manh Cuong, founder of Wischain Company Limited, said that although blocking Telegram will affect many users, it will be a premise to deal with criminals hiding in the form of groups on social networking platforms in general, including Facebook, Threads, TikTok, Zalo... "There are cases where users try to install proxies or use VPNs to access blocked applications, but it is not significant. Anyway, blocking Telegram - considered a den of criminals - has shown the toughness of the authorities towards the platform that allows illegal acts to occur" - Mr. Cuong acknowledged.

However, Mr. Cuong also warned of the risk of bad actors switching to other social networking platforms, especially WhatsApp and Viber. Therefore, users need to be careful of scams, impersonations, calls for investment with "unimaginable" profits or sending malicious code links to avoid "losing money and getting sick".

According to the director of a technology company in Ho Chi Minh City, scams can flourish when users are confused when they cannot access and use Telegram. The trick can be sending links, calling for installing the "quick access Telegram" application, then leading users to fake pages and performing data collection, hacking bank accounts... "Users should not click on strange links, not install apps of unknown origin, not install proxies when they do not understand clearly" - this director recommends.

According to the director of the above technology company, blocking Telegram is like a "punch" to the criminal den, a warning to other platforms in managing and handling fraudulent behaviors. Thereby, the social networking environment will become healthier and users will be better protected.

A user on social network X shows how to “overcome the barrier” to access Telegram. (Screenshot)

According to data from Surfshark and Netblocks, more than 30 countries - including the UK, Germany, Russia, Spain, France... - have imposed temporary or permanent bans on Telegram due to concerns about misinformation, copyright infringement, criminal activities...

Source: https://nld.com.vn/cu-dam-vao-hang-o-toi-pham-mang-196250527215129207.htm