Perfecting the legal framework on protecting human rights and civil rights in the digital environment

It is necessary to focus on perfecting the legal framework for protecting human rights and citizens' rights in the digital environment, based on international treaties on human rights. This is one of the solutions proposed by Party Central Committee member and Minister of Justice NGUYEN HAI NINH at the In-depth Discussion Session with the topic: "Protecting citizens in the digital transformation era - a perspective from Vietnam" held on October 25.

The discussion took place within the framework of the Opening Ceremony of the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime ( Hanoi Convention).

Rapid rise of cybercrime

Minister Nguyen Hai Ninh stated: 25 years after the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (Palermo Convention) was adopted in Italy in 2000 - the first global legal document on preventing transnational crime, the world has witnessed the birth of the next global convention in this field - the Hanoi Convention.

Minister of Justice Nguyen Hai Ninh emphasized that along with technological achievements is the rapid increase of cybercrime with global scale and increasingly complex methods of operation.

We are living in the era of the 4.0 Industrial Revolution, shaped by breakthrough technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data, Blockchain and Internet of Things (IoT). In particular, data has become a strategic resource, bringing enormous economic and social values, opening a new era of development where every individual can connect, learn and create without borders. However, along with technological achievements is the rapid increase of cybercrime with global scale and increasingly complex methods of operation.

“These threats not only cause economic damage but also directly threaten national security, human rights and civil rights,” the Minister emphasized. In that context, according to the Minister, the signing ceremony of the Hanoi Convention is of special significance, serving as a forum for the international community to express their commitment and unify actions in the fight against cross-border cybercrime.

4 key solutions to ensure human rights and civil rights in the digital environment

Pointing out the challenges in Vietnam, Minister Nguyen Hai Ninh said that the core values ​​of digital transformation and technology must be built on the foundation of ensuring human rights and civil rights in the digital environment. To realize this view, Vietnam proposes a number of key solutions:

Firstly , it is necessary to focus on perfecting the legal framework on protecting human rights and civil rights in the digital environment, based on international treaties on human rights.

As a member state of most of the important international conventions on human rights of the United Nations, Vietnam is well aware that these documents not only recognize fundamental rights, but also establish international standards to protect and promote those rights in practice. A concrete step in this process is the signing of the Hanoi Convention today, creating a new legal tool to effectively handle violations of human rights and civil rights in the cyber environment. It can be affirmed that the relationship between the human rights conventions and the Hanoi Convention is complementary and forms a synchronous legal system. If the human rights conventions establish the content of rights, the Hanoi Convention provides a legal mechanism to protect those rights against risks from the digital environment. A clear demonstration of this is the provisions in Articles 14, 15, and 16 of the Hanoi Convention on measures to prevent and address the use of information technology to infringe upon children's rights - rights recognized in the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Minister of Justice Nguyen Hai Ninh speaks at the discussion session.

Furthermore, the key value of the Hanoi Convention lies in its ability to promote international cooperation. In the context of cybercrime increasingly being transboundary, cooperation between countries is identified as a decisive factor for effective prevention. The signing of the Hanoi Convention today is a step to realize that commitment, aiming to establish a transparent and timely data sharing mechanism, contributing to effectively preventing human rights violations in cyberspace, ensuring a safe and healthy digital environment.

Second , ensure harmony between national law and international law, linking the principles of international law with the specific conditions of each country.

We need to unify the perception that international law, although universal, cannot completely replace the legal framework of each country. Based on the specific economic, cultural and social characteristics, each country must proactively improve its legal system to ensure consistency with international law and enhance the effectiveness of implementing international commitments in its own country. This spirit has been clearly realized in Vietnam when, for the first time in its constitutional history, the provisions on the protection of human rights and civil rights were recorded in a separate chapter in the 2013 Constitution. This is considered a remarkable step forward in constitutional thinking, affirming Vietnam's commitment to comprehensively protecting and ensuring human rights and civil rights.

In recent years, Vietnam has made efforts to improve the legal framework through amending, supplementing and promulgating many new legal documents, establishing a strict legal corridor and sanctions to prevent and strictly handle violations of human rights and civil rights in the digital environment at all three levels: criminal, administrative and civil. In particular, important documents such as the Penal Code, the Civil Code and the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations stand out. In particular, Vietnam has issued many specialized laws such as the Law on Cyber ​​Security, the Law on Network Information Security, the Law on Personal Data Protection, the Law on Electronic Transactions, the Law on Protection of Consumer Rights, the Law on Digital Technology Industry, the Law on Science, Technology and Innovation, etc., demonstrating Vietnam's comprehensive approach to establishing a solid legal framework for the digital space. At the same time, affirming Vietnam's determination to ensure safety, security and promote and protect human rights in the digital age.

Minister of Justice Nguyen Hai Ninh

Minister of Justice Nguyen Hai Ninh (second from right) attends the discussion session.

Third , ensuring human rights and civil rights must be associated with protecting national and ethnic interests.

In the digital transformation era, protecting human rights needs to go hand in hand with protecting national security and social order and safety, creating a foundation for sustainable socio-economic development.

The latest report by Viettel Cyber ​​Security Company (under the Military Industry and Telecommunications Group) shows an alarming picture: in the first 6 months of 2025 alone, Vietnam recorded more than 8.5 million stolen personal accounts (accounting for 1.7% globally), nearly 4,500 phishing domains, 1,000 fake websites and 528,000 distributed denial of service attacks. These numbers truly and directly reflect the severity of cyber security risks that all agencies, organizations and individuals are facing.

Faced with this situation, a comprehensive approach is needed, placing the task of protecting citizens in relation to protecting network security and information security in the network environment, from improving early warning capacity, perfecting the legal framework, to promoting investment in modern technical solutions and raising security awareness for all individuals and organizations. Thereby, we will proactively prevent, stop and effectively respond to increasingly sophisticated and global cyber security threats.

Fourth , protecting citizens in cyberspace is not only the core role of the State but also the responsibility of individuals, businesses, organizations and the whole society.

The signing ceremony of the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime taking place today in Hanoi is not only an important milestone in building an international legal regime on cyber security, but also affirms the proactive and responsible role of countries in establishing a global cooperation framework to deal with cybercrime. Emphasizing this, the Minister affirmed: Vietnam is ready to cooperate comprehensively with member countries, international organizations and private partners to build a safe and healthy cyberspace, promote sustainable development and protect global human values.

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In the digital age, when every personal data can become a target of attack, indifference is an accomplice to violations. Therefore, protecting cyberspace must be considered an inseparable moral and legal obligation of all subjects in society; human rights in cyberspace are only truly protected and respected when all subjects are proactive, cooperative and share responsibility. To transform this principle into practical action, in addition to perfecting the legal framework, it is necessary to promote the synchronous implementation of solutions such as propaganda, raising awareness; strengthening and developing cyber security organizations and associations; enhancing dialogue and coordination between the State - enterprises - society; mobilizing diverse investment resources for technical infrastructure. These solutions play a key role in shaping the sense of responsibility and strengthening the capacity to enforce the law on protecting human rights in cyberspace.

Minister of Justice Nguyen Hai Ninh

Source: https://daibieunhandan.vn/hoan-thien-khung-phap-ly-ve-bao-ve-quyen-con-nguoi-quyen-cong-dan-tren-moi-truong-so-10392971.html