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“Every trace on the keyboard can be tracked,” the Facebook page of the police station at Ba Ngòi Ward (Khánh Hòa Province) recently warned its followers.

Latest Developments: In an escalating online crackdown, several ward- and commune-level police Facebook pages in Việt Nam have begun aggressively responding to users who leave challenging or critical comments.

The police are now publicly disclosing the personal data of these commenters—including full names, addresses, birth years, partial phone numbers, and citizen identification numbers—while simultaneously threatening them with fines of 7.5 million đồng.

Two high-profile cases recently sparked widespread public attention.

On April 15, the Facebook page of the police station at Ô Chợ Dừa Ward (Hà Nội) posted screenshots of an exchange with a citizen who had commented, "There are still many fools in your sector.”

Two days later, the police page replied: “We’ve been busy and didn’t have time to check comments; today we logged in and were startled to see Nguyễn XXX XXX, citizen ID number …093…021, representative of two investment and construction companies***, speaking so carelessly. Social media is virtual, but 7.5 million is real, so a son of Hào Xuyên village should take notice.” Note: The full name was displayed but is redacted here to protect privacy. The post was subsequently removed.

A similar incident unfolded on the Facebook page of the police station at Ba Ngòi Ward (Khánh Hòa Province). When a user posted an image of a motorbike with the comment, "Bet you can’t catch me,” the police page publicly exposed the commenter’s full name, year of birth, address, and vehicle information. They added this warning: "Save yourself 7.5 million in fines by not making random comments.” These exchanges were quickly captured and amplified by major Facebook pages, drawing thousands of interactions.

Comments from the Facebook page of Ô Chợ Dừa Ward Police, Hà Nội City.

Comments section from the Facebook page of Ba Ngòi Ward Police, Khánh Hoà province.

While it remains unclear if the Ô Chợ Dừa commenter was penalized, the Ba Ngòi commenter was fined , forced to delete the comment, and required to issue a public apology on their personal Facebook page.

Announcing the penalty on April 16, the Ba Ngòi police emphasized that “every trace on the keyboard can be tracked” and warned the public to “avoid using language that attacks or harasses state agencies.”

The Backstory: The police is currently drafting legal documents designed to drastically increase penalties for online infractions. Under a proposed decree on combating fake news, fines for most violations would skyrocket from 7.5 million đồng to 100 million đồng for individuals and up to 200 million đồng for organizations.

Why It Matters: This localized doxing is part of a broader, years-long trend in which citizens are fined for sharing information the state deems “false,” “distorted,” or “offensive”—typically involving criticism of the Communist Party, the state, or top leaders. Recently, the policy has expanded to heavily penalize posts perceived to “distort” or “offend” the police force itself.

This was highly evident during the 14th Party Congress and the election of the 16th National Assembly in 2026, when numerous citizens were fined for allegedly spreading “distorted” information regarding these events.

Note: The Vietnamese reporters have expanded abbreviations from the original text.

Lê Sáng wrote this article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on April 16, 2026. The Vietnamese Magazine has the copyrights of the English translation.

Social Media Crackdown in Việt Nam: Local Police Dox and Fine Citizens Over Critical Comments

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