Telegram's response to being blocked in Vietnam

On May 24, Mr. Remi Vaughn, a representative of Telegram, said they were surprised by the information that it could be blocked in Vietnam. Telegram has received an official notice from the Department of Telecommunications - Ministry of Science and Technology regarding the service notification procedure according to the new regulations on telecommunications.

"We are processing this request and the deadline for response is May 27," said a Telegram representative.

Telegram is now one of the most popular messaging platforms globally with around one billion users.

Previously, on May 23, the Department of Telecommunications said it had received a document from the Department of Cyber ​​Security and High-Tech Crime Prevention - Ministry of Public Security regarding coordination to prevent the operation of the Telegram application in Vietnam.

Accordingly, the police have provided information about illegal acts related to this application, including fraud, reactionary acts, even drug-related acts, terrorism...

According to security experts, blocking Telegram's activities is necessary and reasonable, in the context that this platform is increasingly being transformed into a haven for criminal and fraudulent activities.

Telegram is currently one of the most popular messaging platforms globally with about 1 billion users. In Vietnam, according to data from Datareportal (February 2025), up to 36.5% of Internet users use this application.

In reality, activities on Telegram are very vibrant, with tens of thousands of groups exchanging harmful information, sharing pornographic images, organizing gambling disguised as "investment instructions"... "Chicken herders" often use this platform to show off photos of "closing profits" of hundreds of millions of dong, billions of dong from investments, sales, winning prizes...

A report published in September 2024 by security firm Kaspersky said that cybercriminals are increasingly using Telegram as a platform to conduct underground transactions.

According to Kaspersky statistics, the number of posts containing bad and toxic content on Telegram in May and June 2024 increased by 53% compared to the same period last year.

How is Telegram doing?

According to the Financial Times, in 2024, the messaging app Telegram recorded an impressive profit of 540 million USD, despite legal risks related to founder Pavel Durov, who is currently under investigation by French authorities.

According to a presentation document sent to investors obtained by the Financial Times , Telegram's revenue in 2024 will reach $1.4 billion, up sharply from $343 million in 2023.

Telegram's outstanding revenue and profits come partly from the increase in paying users, in addition to revenues from cryptocurrency-related projects the company has developed.

However, this growth comes amid doubts about Telegram's future, after its founder was detained in Paris since August last year.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/phan-ung-cua-telegram-ve-viec-sap-bi-chan-tai-viet-nam-196250524103016504.htm